THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 


THE  COLLECTION  OF 
NORTH  CAROLINIANA 

PRESENTED  BY 

MARY  C.  WILEY 


C285 

C39 

c.3 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00022384313 


This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped 
below  unless  recalled  sooner.    It  may  be 
renewed  only  once  and  must  be  brought  to 
the  North  Carolina  Collection  for  renewal. 


Farm  No.   A-369 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2012  with  funding  from 
e  of  Museum  and  Library  Services,  under  the  provisions  of  the  Library  Services  and  Technology  Act,  administered  by  the  State  Library  of  North  Carolina, ; 


2.org/details/centennialaddrespres 


#%u 


SYNOD  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA 


Delivered  at  Alamance  Church,  Greens- 
boro, N.  C,  October  7,1913 


CtNTLNNIAL  ADDRL55L5 

5YNOD  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA 

Delivered  at 

ALAMANCE  CHURCH 

GREENSBORO,  N.  C. 
OCTOBER  7,  1913 


jOS.J    STONE  &  CO..   PRINTERS  AND  BINDERS.  GREENSBORO.   NX 


1  \   -\ 


^1  1 


'  ;     ' 


CONTENTS 


PAGES 

Welcome  Address   7-  9 

The   Beginnings   and  Development   of   the   Presbyterian   Church   in 

North  Carolina  to  1863— Eev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.  D 10-28 

The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism  in  North  Caro- 
lina to  1863— Prof.  Walter  L.  Lingle,  D.D 29-44 

The   Personnel   of   the   Presbyterian   Church   in   North   Carolina   to 

1838— Eev.  D.  I.  Craig,  D.D 45-49 

The  Personnel  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  from 

1838  to  18Q3—Eev.  E.  G.  Hill,  D.D 50-56 

• 

The   Last  Fifty  Years — The   Presbyterian   Church   an   Evangelistic 

Agency— Eev.  E.  F.  Campbell,  D.D 57-64 

The  Last   Fifty  Years — The  Presbyterian   Church   an   Evangelistic 

Agency — Eev.  J.  M.  Eose,  D.D 65-69 

k    Presbyterians  in  Educational  Work  in  North  Carolina  During  the 

Century — Prof.  C.  Alphonso  Smith  70-82 


INTRODUCTION 


The  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  at  its  regular  meeting  in  Goldsboro, 
in  October,  1912,  accepted  the  invitation  from  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Greensboro,  to  hold  its  next  sessions  there,  and  decided  to 
meet  on  October  6,  1913,  and  to  spend  October  7th  at  Alamance  Church, 
six  miles  in  the  country,  in  centennial  celebration,  that  being  the  place 
at  which  the  Synod  was  organized  and  the  exact  centennial  day.  A 
committee  was  appointed  to  prepare  a  suitable  program. 

When  the  Synod  met  in  Greensboro  on  the  evening  of  October  6th, 
1913,  the  committee  submitted  to  the  Synod  the  program  which  it  had 
prepared  and  it  was  approved  and  was  carried  out  in  every  detail  at 
Alamance  Church  on  October  7th.  Because  of  the  large  crowd  expected, 
the  committee  prepared  a  double  program,  assigning  two  speakers  to  each 
subject.  While  one  was  speaking  in  the  church  the  other  was  speaking 
to  an  overflow  congregation  in  the  grove.  This  explains  why  we  have 
two  addresses  on  the  same  subject  in  this  volume.  There  were  over  one 
thousand  people  present.  The  Alamance  congregation  prepared  a  boun- 
tiful and  magnificent  dinner. 

At  the  noon  recess  the  Moderator,  Kev.  M.  McG.  Shields,  called  the 
Synod  together  at  the  place  where  the  old  church  stood,  in  which  the 
Synod  was  organized,  and  lead  the  congregation  in  prayer,  after  which 
the  Synod  ordered  a  monument  to  be  erected  to  mark  the  spot  on  which 
it  was  organized.  A  committee,  with  Eev.  A.  W.  Crawford  as  chairman, 
was  appointed  to  carry  out  this  order.  A  cut  of  the  monument  is  given 
in  this  volume. 

The  Synod  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  addresses,  and  because  of  the  val- 
uable information  which  they  contain,  ordered  the  program  committee  to 
have  them  published  in  permanent  form. 

S.  M.  Eankin,  Chairman. 


ADDRESS  OF  WELCOME  AND  OUTLINE  OP  HISTORY 
OF  ALAMANCE 


REV.    A.    W.    CRAWFORD 


There  is  gladness  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  of  Alamance  today. 
Our  souls  are  stirred  within  us  as  we  look  upon  this  vast  audience,  and 
our  hearts  are  as  wide  open  in  welcome  to  you  as  are  our  doors.  We 
welcome  you  with  the  joy  of  hosts.  We  welcome  you  the  more  as 
Christians.  The  ties  which  bind  us  to  a  common  Lord  bind  us  very 
closely  to  each  other.  We  welcome  you  most  of  all  as  the  representatives 
of  our  beloved  church  from  all  this  great  state,  the  Synod  of  North 
Carolina. 

When  you  met  with  us  before,  100  years  ago,  our  forefathers,  we 
know,  gave  you  no  less  cordial  welcome.  The  venerable  Dr.  Caldwell  for 
50  years  had  then  led  them  in  the  things  of  God  and,  at  88  years,  was 
in  the  vigor  of  a  remarkable  old  age,  teaching  and  preaching  for  seven 
years  thereafter. 

The  exact  spot  was  some  200  yards  north  of  the  location  of  this 
building,  just  below  the  cemetery,  and  on  the  little  plateau  just  above 
the  present  road.  The  church  was  the  big  yellow  frame,  so  memorable 
in  our  history. 

Your  committee  has  thought  it  best  that  I  should  give,  in  the  brief 
time  allotted  to  me,  a  sketch  of  the  church  in  its  long  career  of  150 
years.  The  first  fixed  date  in  its  history  was  the  call  extended  to  Dr. 
Caldwell  and  presented  before  the  Presbytery  of  New  Castle,  meeting 
at  Philadelphia,  May  16,  1765.  The  organization  had  then  been  per- 
fected, but  just  when  this  wTas  done,  and  how  long  before  the  organi- 
zation was  completed  the  work  began,  and  the  first  log  building  was 
erected,  cannot  be  exactly  fixed. 

The  indications  are  that  Dr.  Caldwell  spent  a  part  of  the  previous 
year  with  the  Alamance  and  Buffalo  Churches  and  possibly  at  that  time 
the  organization  was  perfected,  though  the  building  was  possibly  erected 
and  the  work,  in  a  measure,  begun  before  his  coming. 

The  tablet  over  the  entrance  to  the  present  building  states  the 
church  was  organized  in  1762.  This  was  probably  the  date  of  the  begin- 
ning of  the  work  and  the  erection  of  the  first  building. 

The  church  was  organized  with  22  members.  When  the  Synod  was 
organized  here,  50  years  after,  in  1813,  there  were  between  70  and  80 
members.  The  membership  did  not  pass  the  100  mark  until  1829,  65 
years.  In  50  years  more,  in  1882,  it  passed  the  200  mark.  In  24  years 
more,  in  1906,  during  the  ministry  of  Rev.  S.  M.  Rankin,  it  passed  the 
300  mark.  In  seven  years  more,  during  the  summer  of  this  year,  1913, 
it  passed  the  400  mark. 


8  Address  of  Welcome  and  Outline  of  History  of  Alamance 

The  first  building  was  of  log,  located  just  north  of  the  cemetery, 
about  200  yards  north  of  the  present  structure,  erected  1762-64. 

The  second  was  a  large  frame  structure  erected  on  the  same  spot 
about  the  year  1800.  The  log  building  was  torn  down  and  a  pulpit 
erected  in  the  grove,  where  the  services  were  held  while  the  frame 
church  was  in  process  of  erection.  It  was  noted,  and  long  remarked  in 
the  congregation,  that  it  did  not  rain  a  single  Sunday  while  they  wor- 
shiped out  of  doors,  but  the  first  Sunday  they  were  in  the  big  new  frame 
building  and  had  a  roof  over  their  heads,  the  rain  fell  in  torrents. 

This  was  a  notable  building,  its  great  size,  its  big  galleries,  its  great 
high  carved  black  walnut  pulpit,  the  ornamental  porticoes  over  each  door 
supported  by  curiously  carved  brackets.  It  was  painted  yellow  and 
is  familiarly  spoken  of  as  the  old  yellow  church.  Its'  great,  high,  curiously 
carved  black  walnut  pulpit  was  the  work  of  John  Matthews,  a  joiner 
by  trade.  He  was  reared  in  this  congregation  and  educated  by  Dr. 
Caldwell,  and  made  this  pulpit  for  his  pastor.  He  became  the  eminent 
Eev.  John  Matthews,  D.  D.,  of  New  Albany,  Ind.,  living  there  until  1848. 

This  building  was  succeeded  in  1844  by  the  first  brick  building.  It 
stood  a  short  distance  northeast  of  the  location  of  the  present  structure  on 
the  hillside  just  beyond  and  in  the  location  of  the  present  turnpike 
road.  This  building  proved  unsafe.  It  was  taken  down  and  the  present 
brick  building  was  erected  in  1874,  much  of  the  material  of  the  old 
brick  building  being  used  in  the  new. 

To  this  1874  building,  the  fourth,  wings  have  been  added  in  1913 
and  it  has  been  refinished  and  refurnished  throughout.  It  has  been 
replastered,  recovered,  a  new  floor  put  in,  new  oak  pews,  a  gas  lighting 
plant  installed  and  new  carpet  laid.  A  furnace  is  now  being  installed. 
Since  enlargement  the  house  seats  comfortably  between  500  and  600. 

The  noted  Dr.  Caldwell,  of  whom  much  will  doubtless  be  said  in  the 
addresses  today,  had  a  memorable  pastorate,  serving  the  church  for  about 
60  years,  from  1764  probably,  until  his  death,  1824.  He  kept  up  his  full 
regular  work  until  1820,  when  he  was  95  years  of  age. 

Only  less  memorable  was  the  pastorate  of  Dr.  Eli  W.  Caruthers,  for 
40  years,  1821-1861. 

The  pastorates  of  these  two  servants  of  God  covered  a  period  of 
97  years,  and  tablets  to  their  memory  were  placed  side  by  side  in  the 
wall  of  the  vestibule  of  the  present  church.  That  of  Dr.  Caldwell  was 
then  old,  having  been  originally  placed  in  the  old  stone  wall  of  the 
cemetery,  and  after  many  years  removed  to  the  vestibule  of  the  present 
church,  when  it  was  erected  in  1874.  Since  1861,  eleven  ministers  have 
served  the  church  in  the  following  order:  Wm.  L.  Miller,  1863-65, 
2  years;  Wm.  B.  Tidball,  1867-83,  15  years;  Archibald  Currie,  1884-85, 
1  year;  Cornelius  Miller,  1885-91,  6  years;  E.  C.  Murray,  1892-93,  1  year; 
E.  E.  C.  Lawson,  1893-94,  1  year;  H.  D.  LeQueux,  1894-1902,  8  years; 
S.  M.  Eankin,  1903-07,  4  years;  J.  C.  Shive,  1908,  part  of  one  year; 
J.  A.  WilsoD,  1909-12,  3  years;  A.  W.  Crawford,  the  present  pastor,  who 
began  his  work  March  1st  of  this  year. 

A  most  notable  part  of  the  work  of  the  church  in  its  history  has 
been  the  great  number  of  ministers  reared  in  and  sent  out  from  the 
congregation.     The   list   began   with   the   eminent   Eev.    John   Matthews, 


By  Rev.  A.  W.  Crawford  9 

D.  D.,  of  New  Albany,  Ind.  They  are  in  every  part  of  the  land,  in 
our  own  church,  in  other  Presbyterian  bodies  and  some,  factors  in  the 
life  and  work  of  other  bodies  of  God's  people.  Including  four  young 
men  who  are  now  in  preparation  for  the  ministry,  the  number  reaches  34. 

The  work  of  the  church  has  been  characterized  by  an  evangelistic 
tone  through  its  history.  Great  revivals  occurred  here  in  the  past,  not- 
ably in  1801,  in  1829,  in  1858.  In  the  present  time  no  congregation  has 
been  more  responsive  to  the  preaching  of  the  Word,  and  any  of  our 
pastors  who  may  be  so  fortunate  as  to  have  an  opportunity  for  evan- 
gelistic services  here,  may  count  on  a  responsive  people,  a  spiritual 
service,  and  an  effective  work. 

For  150  years  God  has  used  this  people  and  the  service  in  this  place 
for  gathering  the  redeemed  into  the  kingdom,  and  for  the  comfort  and 
the  culture  of  his  srints.  With  a  more  complete  equipment  and  a  larger 
membership  than  at  any  time  before  in  our  history,  we  face  the  future  in 
hope.  His  grace  has  kept  us  and  enabled  us  to  do  something  for  Him 
through  the  years.  By  His  grace  it  is  our  hope  and  earnest  desire  that 
we  may  be  used  for  greater  things  in  the  years  to  come,  and  that  this 
church  may  become  the  factor  in  the  great  work  of  this  Synod  which 
God  would  seem  to  indicate  from  her  history  and  her  present  position. 


10 


THE    BEGINNINGS    AND    DEVELOPMENT    OF    THE 

PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

TO  1863 


REV.    W.   W.    MOORE,    LL.  D. 

President  of  Union  Theological  Seminary 
Richmond,   Ya. 


Fons  ET  Origo 

The  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  is  mainly  the  result  of 
two  streams  of  immigration  from  Northwestern  Europe — one  from  the 
north  of  Scotland,  and  the  other  from  the  north  of  Ireland.  Both 
streams  were  set  in  motion  by  the  oppressions  of  the  British  government. 
Both  the  Scotch  and  the  Scotch-Irish  came  to  the  New  World  seeking 
the  civil  and  religious  liberty  which  was  denied  them  in  the  Old.  The 
Scotch  entered  by  the  port  of  Wilmington  and  occupied  the  Cape  Fear 
country  in  and  around  what  is  now  Cumberland  County;  and  the  Scotch- 
Irish  entered  mainly  by  the  ports  of  Philadelphia  and  Charleston  and 
occupied  chiefly  the  Piedmont  region  farther  west. 

Earliest  Presbyterian  Settlements 

To  this  day  these  two  parts  of  the  State  are  the  chief  centers  of  our 
Presbyterian  strength.  Yet  it  is  an  interesting  fact  that  the  earliest  of 
the  Scotch-Irish  settlements  was  not  on  the  Yadkin  or  the  Catawba,  but 
in  Duplin  County,  where  a  colony  of  Presbyterians  from  Ulster  settled 
about  1736.  Their  principal  place  of  worship  was  called  Goshen  Grove, 
and  was  about  three  miles  from  what  is  now  Kenansville;  and  to  this 
venerable  congregation  the  present  Grove  Church  at  Kenansville  traces 
its  origin.  Farther  down  towards  Wilmington,  in  what  was  called  the 
Welsh  Tract,  in  New  Hanover  County,  was  another  early  settlement,  at 
first  composed  of  Welsh  emigrants,  but  shortly  afterwards  reinforced  by 
other  families.  In  the  northern  part  of  the  State  also  (known  later  as 
Granville,  Orange  and  Caswell  Counties),  Scotch-Irish  settlements  began 
about  1738. 

The  First  Missionary,  AVilliam  Eobinson — 1742-1743 

The  religious  needs  of  all  these  scattered  Presbyterian  settlements  in 
North  Carolina  were  met  in  a  measure  for  a  number  of  years  by  mis- 
sionaries sent  from  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey,  where  there  was 
already  a  large  and  rapidly  growing  Scotch-Irish  population.  The  first 
of  these  missionaries,  and  the  first  Presbyterian  minister  that  ever 
preached  in  North  Carolina,  seems  to  have  been  William  Eobinson,  who 


The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church       11 

spent  a  part  of  the  winter  of  1742  and  1743  among  Presbyterian 
settlements  in  this  colony.  His  work  as  a  missionary  in  Virginia  had 
been  remarkably  successful,  but  the  results  of  his  labor  in  Carolina  were 
very  small.  We  do  not  even  know  what  the  places  were  that  he  visited 
on  his  tour,  but  as  the  Presbyterian  settlements  in  Duplin  and  New 
Hanover  were  the  oldest  in  the  State,  it  is  probable  that  these  were 
among  the  places  that  he  visited,  as  well  as  the  settlements  in  Orange 
and  Granville. 

Hugh  McAden's  Missionary  Journey — 1755-1756 

No  such  uncertainty  attaches  to  the  movements  of  the  next  missionary 
who  is  known  to  have  preached  in  these  parts,  Hugh  McAden,  for,  in  a 
full  and  interesting  journal — which  has  happily  been  preserved  almost 
entire,  and  which  is  the  most  valuable  document  that  has  come  down 
to  us  from  those  early  days — he  describes  in  detail  the  extended  mis- 
sionary journey  through  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas  on  which  he  was 
sent  as  a  young  licentiate  by  Newcastle  Presbytery  in  1755  and  1756,  a 
journey  which  occupied  a  whole  year.  Traveling  horseback  and  preach- 
ing as  he  went,  he  passed  through  the  Valley  of  Virginia  from  the 
Potomac  almost  to  the  Peaks  of  Otter,  hearing  as  he  came  with  sorrow 
and  dismay  the  news  of  Braddoek's  defeat,  crossed  the  Blue  Eidge,  then 
the  Dan  Eiver  and  entered  North  Carolina  July  29,  1755.  Without  under- 
taking to  enumerate  all  the  places  at  which  he  preached  in  homes  or  meet- 
ing houses  after  entering  the  State,  let  us  mention  a  few  in  order  to  get 
a  general  idea  of  his  route :  Hieo,  Eno,  Grassy  Creek,  Fishing  Creek, 
Hawfields,  Buffalo,  Yadkin  Ford,  Eocky  Eiver,  Sugar  Creek  (October 
19th),  the  Broad  Eiver  country  in  Upper  South  Carolina,  the  Waxhaws; 
then  back  into  North  Carolina,  revisiting  some  of  the  places  touched  on 
his  southward  journey  and  including  Coddle  Creek,  Thyatira  and  Second 
Creek;  then  east  to  the  Highlanders  on  the  Cape  Fear,  preaching  at 
Hector  McNeill's  (The  Bluff),  Alexander  McKay's  (where  Longstreet 
Church  now  stands),  Bladen  Court  House,  and  other  points;  then  to 
Wilmington,  where,  on  February  15,  1756,  he  preached  in  the  morning 
"to  a  large  and  splendid  audience",  but  in  the  afternoon  to  only  "about 
a  dozen ' ',  a  slump  which  greatly  surprised  and  depressed  him.  The 
next  two  Sundays  he  preached  at  Mr.  Evans ',  in  the  Welsh  Tract,  and 
the  people  there  took  some  steps  towards  raising  a  salary  and  calling 
him  as  pastor.  In  March  we  find  him  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Dickson,  the 
Clerk  of  Duplin  County,  where  he  preached  to  a  considerable  congrega- 
tion, most  of  whom  were  ' '  Irish ' ',  as  he  calls  them,  meaning  of  course 
' '  Scotch-Irish ' '.  It  must  always  be  remembered  that  by  this  name  is 
meant  not  a  mixture  of  Scotch  and  Irish,  but  Scotch  people  of  pure 
strain  who  had  lived  for  a  few  generations  in  the  north  of  Ireland. 
McAden  pursued  his  journey  northward  as  far  as  Edgecombe;  then 
westward,  coming  again  in  April  to  the  Granville  County  region,  which 
he  had  traversed  the  preceding  summer,  and  passed  out  of  the  State 
on  his  homeward  journey  on  May  6,  1756.  On  his  return  to  Pennsyl- 
vania, he  seems  to  have  visited  James  Campbell,  a  Scotch  minister,  who 
was  then  preaching  in  Lancaster  County,  in  that  State,  and  turned  his 
attention  to  the   condition   of  his   countrymen   on   the  Cape   Fear,   with 


12       The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

the  result  that  in  the  following  year  (1757)  Mr.  Campbell  moved  thither 
and  became  their  minister. 

From  Culloden  to  the  Cape  Fear 

These  Scotch  settlements  on  the  upper  Cape  Fear  antedated  those 
of  the  Scotch-Irish  on  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba.  Some  Scotch  fam- 
ilies are  known  to  have  been  there  as  far  back  as  1729,  when  the  province 
was  divided  into  North  and  South  Carolina;  and,  when  Alexander  Clark 
arrived  with  his  shipload  of  emigrants  in  1736,  he  found  "a  good  many" 
Scotch  already  settled  in  Cumberland.  But  the  great  influx  of  the 
Highlanders  began  ten  years  later,  after  the  disastrous  Battle  of  Cullo- 
den, where  their  unworthy  and  ill-starred  leader,  Charles  Edward,  the 
Yoimg  Pretender,  was  utterly  routed,  and  after  five  months  of  wan- 
derings and  hardships,  aided  by  the  heroic  Flora  McDonald  and  others, 
escaped  to  France.  His  misguided  but  devoted  followers  were  hunted 
down  and  slain  in  large  numbers,  their  houses  burned,  their  cattle  car- 
ried away,  their  property  destroyed,  and  their  country  ravaged  with  a 
ruthless  hand.  Many  were  carried  captive  to  England,  and  scores  of 
them  publicly  executed  there  as  rebels.  Finally,  however,  George  II,  with 
tardy  clemency,  pardoned  a  great  number  of  them  on  condition  of  their 
taking  the  oath  of  allegiance.  But  even  then  they  were  subjected  to 
much  petty  oppression  and  many  indignities,  being  forbidden  to  own  any 
weapons  or  to  wear  their  ancient  national  dress,  and  being  surrounded 
by  armed  men  and  spies  of  the  government.  These  were  the  conditions 
that  gave  rise  to  the  large  settlements  of  the  Scotch  on  the  Cape  Fear. 
Hundreds  of  the  Highlanders  sailed  for  the  New  World.  In  1749,  a 
company  of  about  three  hundred,  under  the  leadership  of  Neill  McNeill, 
landed  at  Wilmington  and  settled  in  the  region  of  which  the  community 
then  known  as  Cross  Creek,  afterwards  as  Campbellton,  and  now  as  Fay- 
etteville,  was  the  center.  These  were  followed  by  other  large  companies 
of  their  countrymen  who  wished  to  escape  persecution  and  improve  their 
general  condition,  and  so  in  time  they  spread  through  all  the  territory 
now  comprised  in  the  counties  of  Cumberland,  Bladen,  Sampson,  Moore, 
Harnett,  Montgomery,  Bobeson,  Hoke,   Scotland,  Bichmond  and  Anson. 

The  First  Settled  Pastor,  James  Campbell — 1757-1780 

These  immigrants  of  1749  brought  no  minister  with  them;  and,  as 
there  were  here  no  established  Presbyterian  Church,  dividing  the  coun- 
try into  parishes  by  civil  authority,  and  no  collections  of  ministers ' 
salaries  by  law,  as  in  the  old  country,  and,  as  the  immigrants  could  not 
immediately  invent  and  introduce  a  new  method — they  seem  to  have  had 
no  regular  public  services  till  the  arrival  of  James  Campbell  in  1757, 
after  his  interview  with  McAden.  We  have  already  seen  that,  in  the 
preceding  year  (1756),  McAden  had  visited  these  settlements  and 
preached  at  various  places  to  the  Highlanders,  some  of  whom — knowing 
only  Gaelic — understood  but  little  of  what  he  said ;  and  that  it  was  mainly 
McAden 's  reports  of  their  spiritual  destitution  that  influenced  Campbell 
to  come.  He  settled  on  the  Cape  Fear,  a  few  miles  above  Fayetteville, 
and  began  to  preach  principally  at  three  points.     In  1758,  he  was  given 


Rev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  13 

a  formal  call  signed  by  twelve  representative  men  in  the  community,  in 
which  it  was  stipulated  that  he  should  receive  a  salary  of  one  hundred 
pounds  per  annum.  In  a  short  time,  three  churches  were  organized,  since 
known  as  Bluff,  Barbecue  and  Longstreet. 

It  was  Mr.  Campbell's  custom  to  preach  two  sermons  each  Sabbath, 
one  in  Gaelic  for  the  benefit  of  the  Highlanders,  and  the  other  in  English 
for  the  benefit  of  the  less  numerous  families  of  Lowland  Scotch,  Scotch- 
Irish  and  Dutch,  who  were  mingled  with  them.  In  a  few  congregations 
of  Fayetteville  Presbytery,  this  custom  of  bi-lingual  preaching  was  kept 
up  for  about  a  hundred  years.  That  Mr.  Campbell's  people  were  well 
trained  by  his  ' '  exegetical  and  practical ' '  preaching  in  the  two  lan- 
guages and  by  his  thorough  catechetical  methods;  that  they  had  the 
Scotch  genius  for  theological  discussion,  and  were  formidable  "sermon- 
tasters",  is  clearly  shown  by  a  remark  of  Rev.  John  McLeod,  who  was 
for  a  few  years  Mr.  Campbell 's  assistant.  He  said :  ' '  He  would  rather 
preach  to  the  most  polished  and  fashionable  congregation  in  Edinburgh 
than  to  the  little  critical  carls  of  Barbecue ' '.  This  church  was  Flora 
McDonald's  place  of  worship  while  she  lived  at  Cameron's  Hill.  For 
nineteen  years  Mr.  Campbell  prosecuted  a  laborious  and  fruitful  ministry. 
For  more  than  a  year  of  this  period  he  also  served  the  people  of  Purity 
Church,  South  Carolina,  making  the  long  journey  across  the  country 
at  regular  times  for  that  purpose.  He  was  thus  the  first  minister  of 
what  is  now  the  flourishing  church  at  Chester.  When  the  Bevolutionary 
War  broke  out,  his  mettle  was  still  further  tested ;  for,  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  most  of  his  parishioners,  mindful  of  their  former  sufferings  and 
their  special  oath  of  allegiance,  supported  the  Crown,  he,  like  all  other 
Presbyterian  ministers  throughout  the  land,  promptly  espoused  the  cause 
of  the  colonies.  This  led  to  his  withdrawal  from  his  charge  for  four  years, 
during  which  he  preached  in  the  upper  part  of  the  State;  but  in  the  last 
year  of  his  life  he  returned  to  his  home,  and  there  in  1780  he  died.  To 
James  Campbell,  then,  belongs  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  ordained 
minister  to  take  up  his  abode  among  the  Presbyterian  settlements  of 
North  Carolina. 

And  yet  the  honor  may  well  be  shared  by  two  of  his  contemporaries — 
one  in  the  west  and  the  other  in  the  east;  for  in  1758,  the  same  year 
in  which  Campbell  received  his  formal  call  to  the  Cape  Fear  congregation, 
Alexander  Craighead  was  installed  pastor  of  Bocky  River  Church,  not 
far  from  the  present  town  of  Concord;  and  in  the  following  year,  1759, 
Hugh  McAden  was  installed  as  pastor  in  Duplin  and  New  Hanover.  It 
is  thought  by  some  good  authorities  that  McAden 's  settlement  preceded 
that  of  Campbell.  I  follow  the  dates  given  in  Foote's  Sketches.  Camp- 
bel,  Craighead  and  McAden — this  is  our  triumvirate  of  pioneer  pastors. 
These  three  we  honor  as  the  fathers  of  our  Synod. 

McAden  and  Others  in  Duplin  and  New  Hanover 

McAden  labored  for  about  nine  years  in  Duplin  and  New  Hanover; 
and  then,  for  reasons  of  health,  moved  to  Caswell  in  the  Dan  River  valley, 
where  he   spent  the  rest   of   his   life,   thirteen   years,   preaching   to   the 


14       The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

people  of  that  county  and  the  neighboring  county  of  Pittsylvania  in 
Virginia.     He  died  in  1781  at  his  home  near  Bed  House  Church. 

The  work  in  Duplin  and  New  Hanover  languished  after  MeAden's 
departure,  but  some  other  beginnings  were  made  in  that  region  which 
it  behooves  us  to  notice  briefly  before  turning  our  attention  to  the  plant- 
ing of  Presbyterianism  in  the  upper  parts  of  the  State.  While  ( '  Wil- 
mington had  no  organized  church  till  long  after  the  Eevolution ' ',  the 
people  there  enjoyed  the  occasional  services  of  certain  scholarly  men  who 
acted  in  the  double  capacity  of  school  teachers  and  ministers.  The  first 
of  these  was  Rev.  James  Tate,  who  came  from  Ireland  to  Wilmington 
about  1760  and  "for  his  support  opened  a  classical  school,  the  first 
ever  taught  in  the  place.  He  educated  many  of  the  young  men  of  New 
Hanover  who  took  an  active  part  in  the  Eevolution ' '.  He  was  a  staunch 
patriot,  and  for  a  while  during  the  war  for  freedom  he  had  to  withdraw 
from  Wilmington,  making  his  home  at  Hawfields.  Though  declining 
all  offers  to  become  a  settled  pastor,  he  made  frequent  journeys  through 
New  Hanover  and  the  adjoining  counties,  particularly  up  the  Black 
and  South  Rivers,  preaching  to  the  people  and  baptizing  their  children. 
' '  He  received  a  small  fee  for  each  baptism,  either  in  money  or  cotton 
yarn;  and  this  appears  to  have  been  all  his  salary  and  all  the  remunera- 
tion for  his  journeyings  and  services. ' ' 

About  the  year  1785,  Eev.  William  Bingham,  also  from  Ireland, 
began  to  preach  in  Wilmington  and  the  surorunding  country,  and  he,  too, 
supported  himself  by  teaching  a  classical  school.  His  success  as  a 
teacher  was  extraordinary,  not  only  in  Wilmington,  but  also  in  Chatham 
and  Orange  Counties,  whither  he  moved  later.  He  was  the  progenitor  of 
a  famous  line  of  headmasters  to  whom  Church  and  State  are  alike  deeply 
indebted. 

The  first  church  building  on  Black  Eiver  was  erected  about  1770. 
Eoekfisk,  Keith  and  Hopewell  were  organized  under  the  ministry  of 
Eev.  Eobert  Tate,  who  came  to  New  Hanover  in  1799. 

Alexander  Craighead  and  the  Seven  Churches  of  Mecklenburg 

So  much  for  Presbyterianism  in  the  east  down  to  1800.  Now  we  turn 
to  the  beginnings  of  our  church  in  the  west,  the  Piedmont  region,  stretch- 
ing from  the  Dan  to  the  Catawba.  The  first  minister  to  settle  in  this 
part  of  the  State,  as  already  noted,  was  Alexander  Craighead,  a  man  of 
ardent  temperament  and  strong  convictions,  a  warm  admirer  of  the 
methods  of  Whitefield  in  religious  work,  a  fearless  champion  of  civil  and 
religious  liberty,  and  a  progressive  from  spur  to  plume.  Himself  a 
native  of  Ireland,  he  was  well  acquainted  with  the  oppressions  to  which 
his  people  had  been  subjected  by  the  bigots  who  ruled  England;  and, 
when  he  came  to  America  about  1736,  he  came  burning  with  indignation 
and  panting  to  oppose  any  similar  tyranny  here.  He  was  far  in  advance 
even  of  his  Scotch-Irish  brethren  in  his  views  on  this  subject.  A  pamph- 
let which  he  published  gave  great  offense  to  the  Governor  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. The  Governor  laid  it  before  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia,  of  which 
Craighead  was  a  member,  and  the  Synod  expressed  its  disapproval  of 
Craighead 's  views.     Other   differences  arose  between  him  and  his  more 


Bev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  15 

conservative  brethren,  and  in  3  749  he  moved  to  Augusta  County,  Vir- 
ginia, and  made  his  home  for  six  years  in  the  bounds  of  the  present 
Windy  Cove  congregation.  Braddock's  defeat  in  1755  left  the  people 
of  Craighead's  charge  exposed  to  the  murderous  incursions  of  the 
Indians.  Many  of  them  therefore  left  their  homes,  crossed  the  Blue 
Eidge,  turned  southward,  and  settled  permanently  in  the  beautiful  coun- 
try between  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba,  much  of  which  was  then 
covered  with  tall  grass,  open  prairies  alternating  with  heavy  cane-brakes 
and  forests.  Craighead  came  with  his  people;  and  thus  it  was  that 
North  Carolina  secured  her  great  apostle  of  independence.  Already  other 
settlers  of  the  same  sturdy  stock  were  established  there,  and  there 
McAden  found  them  in  1755.  In  1758,  Craighead  was  installed  pastor 
at  Eocky  Eiver,  which  then  included  Sugar  Creek,  the  first  Presbyterian 
minister  to  settle  in  the  western  part  of  the  State,  and  here  for  the 
remaining  eight  years  of  his  life  among  a  homogeneous  and  highly 
intelligent  people,  thoroughly  agreed  in  their  general  principles  of  relig- 
ion and  church  government,  far  removed  from  the  seat  of  civil  authority, 
he  preached  the  pure  Gospel  and  poured  forth  his  principles  of  civil  and 
religious  liberty.  The  seed  he  sowed  in  this  congenial  soil  yielded  a 
mighty  harvest,  for  though  he  died  in  1766,  yet  it  was  his  voice  that 
spoke  in  the  ringing  resolutions  of  the  men  of  Mecklenburg  in  May,  1775. 
For  eight  years  Craighead  was  the  lone  star  in  this  region,  "the 
solitary  minister  between  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba",  the  one  settled 
pastor  in  "the  beautiful  Mesopotamia  of  Carolina",  the  chief  teacher 
of  the  people  in  religion,  the  chief  molder  of  public  opinion  on  questions 
both  of  Church  and  State.  But  other  congregations  were  now  growing 
up  around  the  mother  church,  and  in  1764  the  Eev.  Messrs.  Elihu 
Spencer  and  Alexander  McWhorter  were  sent  to  North  Carolina  by  the 
Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  to  aid  these  congregations  in 
adjusting  their  bounds  and  in  effecting  a  more  perfect  organization.  In 
1765  they  reported  to  the  Synod  that  they  had  performed  this  mission. 
Among  the  churches  thus  organized  were  Steele  Creek,  Providence,  Hope- 
well, Center  and  Poplar  Tent;  and  these,  with  Eocky  Eiver  and  Sugar 
Creek,  constituted  the  historic  group  of  seven  congregations  from  which 
all  the  delegates  came  who  ten  years  later  at  Charlotte  declared  their 
independence  of  the  British  government. 

James  Hall  and  Fourth  Creek 

In  the  same  year  (1764-5),  and  on  the  same  tour,  Messrs.  Spencer  and 
McWhorter  organized  the  two  oldest  congregations  in  Eowan  and  Iredell 
— namely,  Thyatira  and  Fourth  Creek,  the  latter  now  represented  by 
Statesville,  Bethany,  Tabor,  and  Concord  in  Iredell.  These  Fourth  Creek 
settlements  and  that  at  Cathey's  (now  Thyatira)  had  begun  some  years 
before,  perhaps  not  far  from  1750,  and  had  been  supplied  with  occasional 
preaching  by  missionaries  from  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia  and  New- 
York,  as  we  know  from  synodieal  records  dating  back  to  1753.  In 
1765  these  two  congregations  called  Eev.  Elihu  Spencer,  but  failed  to 
secure  him,  and  neither  of  them  seems  to  have  had  a  settled  minister  till 


16      The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

about  twelve  years  later,  shortly  after  the  beginning  of  the  Eevolutionary 
War. 

The  first  regular  pastor  of  Fourth  Creek  was  James  Hall,  who  had 
grown  up  among  the  people  of  this  congregation,  and  who  became  their 
pastor  in  1778.  Graduating  at  Nassau  Hall,  Princeton,  with  the  degree 
of  A.  B.  in  his  thirty-first  year  (1774),  he  studied  theology  under  the 
celebrated  John  Witherspoon,  president  of  that  institution,  from  whom 
also  he  imbibed  his  well  known  political  views,  and,  declining  the  position 
of  teacher  of  mathematics  in  the  college,  he  returned  to  North  Carolina 
and  began  among  his  own  people  a  beneficent  and  arduous  career  as 
pastor,  missionary,  patriot,  soldier  and  educator.  He  fired  the  hearts 
of  his  countrymen  to  resist  British  tyranny.  He  called  his  people  to  arms 
in  defense  of  their  liberties.  He  served  in  the  field  in  the  two-fold  capac- 
ity of  cavalry  commander  and  chaplain  of  the  regiment.  Tall,  sinewy, 
courageous,  cool,  exact,  resourceful,  and  decided,  of  fine  voice  and  com- 
manding presence,  he  was  every  inch  a  soldier,  and  it  is  no  wonder  Gen- 
eral Greene  offered  him  a  commission  as  brigadier-general.  But  he  was 
even  more  a  soldier  of  the  Cross  than  of  his  country,  and,  while  ever 
ready  to  serve  in  an  emergency,  with  tongue  or  sword,  to  rouse  his  coun- 
trymen from  their  lethargy  or  lead  them  against  the  foe,  he  never  lost 
sight  of  the  fact  that  his  supreme  work  was  to  preach  the  Gospel,  and, 
believing  that  others  without  his  responsibilities  and  opportunities  as  a 
minister,  could  render  the  military  service  needed  better  than  he  could,  he 
declined  the  proffered  honor  in  order  to  devote  himself  more  fully  to  his 
proper  work.  He  made  many  missionary  journeys  and  was  the  pioneer 
Protestant  missionary  to  the  lower  valley  of  the  Mississippi.  He  attended 
the  General  Assembly  in  Philadelphia  sixteen  times,  riding  the  whole  way 
on  horseback  or  in  a  sulky,  and  was  once  moderator. 

Besides  his  contribution  to  the  intellectual  life  of  his  people  by  his 
preaching,  he  founded  a  circulating  library,  organized  debating  societies, 
formed  classes  in  grammar,  for  which  he  wrote  his  own  text-book, 
afterwards  published,  and  established  a  school  of  classical,  scientific  and 
theological  study,  where  many  of  the  leading  men  of  the  time  in  all 
walks  of  life  were  educated,  including  at  least  twenty  prominent  minis- 
ters, whose  names  we  know  and  whose  labors  extended  and  perpetuated 
Dr.  Hall 's  influence  throughout  the  Carolinas,  Georgia,  Tennessee  and 
Kentucky.  He  was  present  at  the  formation  of  the  American  Bible 
Society  and  was  the  first  President  of  the  North  Carolina  State  Bible 
Society. 

An  incendiary  commander,  who  ravaged  a  fair  land  during  our 
Civil  War,  burning  the  houses  of  the  people  and  turning  women  and 
children  and  invalids  into  the  wintry  weather  without  shelter,  said  with 
full  knowledge,  "War  is  hell".  He  was  referring  to  physical  condi- 
tions, but  it  is  largely  true  in  the  moral  sense  also.  The  demoralization 
which  always  accompanies  war  manifested  itself  at  the  close  of  our 
Eevolutionary  struggle  in  an  appalling  increase  of  vice — profanity, 
drunkenness  and  gambling.  Dr.  Hall's  spirit  was  stirred  within  him 
when  he  saw  the  country  so  given  to  sin,  and  he  prayed  and  preached 
more  earnestly  than  ever.  God  graciously  blessed  his  efforts  and  granted 
to  his  charge  the  first  revival  of  religion  in  Concord   Presbytery  after 


Rev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  17 

the  Revolution.     At  one  communion  about  eighty  members  were  received 
on  profession  of  faith,  and  at  another  about  sixty. 

Such  were  the  strenuous  and  varied  activities  of  the  father  of  Presby- 
terianism  in  Iredell. 

Other  Revolutionary  Worthies  West  of  the  Yadkin 

Craighead  and  Hall  have  been  somewhat  fully  sketched  as  representing 
the  pre-Revolutionary  and  Revolutionary  periods  of  our  Church's 
history  in  the  region  between  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba.  The  limits 
of  this  paper  forbid  our  speaking  with  equal  fulness  of  Hall's  contem- 
poraries and  successors  in  the  territory  now  comprised  in  Iredell,  Rowan, 
Cabarrus  and  Mecklenburg,  and  in  parts  of  Lincoln  and  Gaston — of 
Samuel  E.  McCorkle,  the  first  pastor  of  Thyatira  (1777),  who  married 
the  daughter  of  Mrs.  Steele,  of  Salisbury,  the  patriotic  friend  of  Gen- 
eral Greene;  who  founded  the  classical  school  in  Rowan  from  which  six 
of  the  seven  members  of  the  first  class  at  the  University  of  North  Caro- 
lina came;  who  trained  forty -five  boys  who  afterwards  entered  the 
ministry,  besides  many  others  who  served  their  country  at  the  bar,  on  the 
bench,  and  in  the  chair  of  state;  who  was  himself  elected  the  first 
professor  in  the  University  at  Chapel  Hill,  a  position  which  he  declined; 
who  devised  and  operated  in  his  congregation  with  the  aid  of  his  elders 
a  method  of  systematic  and  comprehensive  Bible  study,  which  probably 
secured  as  good  results  in  the  way  of  Scriptural  knowledge  as  any 
of  the  advanced  methods  of  this  present  time;  of  Hezekiah  James  Baleh, 
pastor  of  Rocky  River  and  Poplar  Tent,  the  only  minister  who  sat  in 
the  Mecklenburg  Convention  of  1775;  of  Ephraim  Brevard,  the  Chris- 
tian physician  and  statesman,  who  framed  the  resolutions  adopted  by  that 
Convention ;  of  Thomas  H.  McCaule,  the  patriotic  pastor  of  Center,  who 
accompanied  his  people  to  the  camp  and  was  by  the  side  of  Gen.  William 
Davidson  when  that  brilliant  young  officer  was  killed  at  Cowan 's  Ford, 
leaving  behind  him  an  illustrious  name  which  will  live  forever  in  connec- 
tion with  our  great  college  for  young  men;  of  Humphrey  Hunter,  who, 
when  Liberty  Hall  Academy,  at  Charlotte,  was  broken  up  by  the  invas- 
ion of  Cornwallis,  joined  the  army  along  with  other  students,  was  cap- 
tured in  the  defeat  of  Gates  at  Camden,  fought  and  vanquished  with 
pine  knots  a  British  cavalryman  fully  armed  with  sword  and  pistols,  and 
shortly  afterwards  with  a  few  fellow-prisoners  seized  and  disarmed  the 
guard  and  escaped,  was  wounded  at  Eutaw  Springs,  studied  theology 
after  the  war,  and  became  pastor  of  Unity,  in  Lincoln,  and  of  Goshen, 
in  Gaston  (where  my  own  forebears  worshiped  and  are  buried),  and 
later  of  Steele  Creek,  in  Mecklenburg,  where  he  spent  the  last  twenty-two 
years  of  his  life,  acting  also  as  free  physician  to  his  people  as  well  as 
their  pastor,  because  of  the  scarcity  of  regular  doctors  at  that  period — 
a  good  type  of  the  intrepid,  active,  versatile  and  devoted  patriots  and 
preachers  who  won  the  liberties  of  this  land  and  laid  the  foundations 
of  our  society  in  the  fear  of  God;  of  the  Alexanders,  Grahams,  Johnsons, 
McDowells,  Osbornes,  Morrisons,  Ramsays,  Wilsons,  Caldwells,  Har- 
rises, Robinsons,  Irwins,  Phifers,  Averys,  Polks,  Pharrs,  Griers  and 
many  others,  the  rank  and  file,  the  bone  and  sinew  of  the  staunch  popula- 


18       The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

tion  which  dwelt  between  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba  in  that  formative 
period,  and  whose  faith  and  force  of  character  gave  to  the  Presbyterian 
element  the  preeminence  in  all  that  region  which  it  maintains  to  this 
day — of  all  these  nothing  can  be  said  in  this  paper  beyond  this  bare 
allusion. 

The  Fathers  of  the  Church  in  Granville,  Caswell,  Orange  and 

Guilford 

Besides  Duplin  and  Cumberland  in  the  east,  and  the  Yadkin-Catawba 
country  in  the  west,  there  is  a  third  portion  of  the  State  in  which 
important  foundation  work  was  done  in  the  pre-Revolutionary  period, 
the  northern  portion,  the  region  extending  eastward  and  northward  from 
the  place  where  we  now  stand  to  the  Virginia  line.  Dr.  D.  I.  Craig 
has  pointed  out  that,  if  the  graves  of  the  three  patriarchs  of  Presby- 
terianism  in  North  Carolina — Campbell,  Craighead  and  McAden,  near 
Fayetteville,  Charlotte  and  Milton,  respectively,  be  taken  as  starting 
points  and  lines  be  drawn  from  one  to  another,  those  lines  will  form  an 
almost  perfect  triangle,  including  the  central  portion  of  the  State,  the 
core  of  the  commonwealth,  and  will  touch  most  of  the  territory  in  which 
the  earlier  Presbyterian  settlements  were  made,  with  the  greater  part  of 
our  strength  clustering  around  the  three  angles.  Two  of  these  angles, 
those  near  Fayetteville  and  Charlotte,  we  have  considered,  and  now  turn 
to  the  third,  the  one  projecting  into  the  northern  tier  of  counties,  Gran- 
ville, Caswell,  Orange  and  Guilford  (which  then  extended  to  the  Vir- 
ginia line).  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians  began  to  settle  along  the  Eno 
and  Haw  Eivers  about  1738  and  were  visited  at  intervals  by  missionaries 
sent  out  by  the  Synods  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia.  We  have  already 
noted  the  fact  that  McAden  visited  them  in  1755,  and  that  about  1768, 
after  his  nine  years  ministry  in  Duplin,  he  became  resident  pastor  in 
Caswell,  preaching  at  Dan  Eiver,  Eed  House  and  North  Hico  (Grier's). 
Three  years  before  McAden 's  settlement  there,  that  is,  in  1765,  the 
Presbytery  of  Hanover  convened  at  Lower  Hico  Church  (afterwards 
called  Barnett's)  in  what  is  now  Person  County  (the  first  meeting  of  a 
Presbytery  ever  held  in  the  State),  and  had  ordained  Eev.  James  Cres- 
well  pastor  of  Lower  Hico  and  of  Grassy  Creek  and  Nutbush  Churches,  in 
Granville  County,  where  Presbyterian  immigrants  from  the  neighborhood 
of  Eichmond,  Va.,  had  settled  some  years  before.  Grassy  Creek  is  said 
to  have  been  organized  in  1753  and  Nutbush  in  1757. 

Henry  Patillo 

At  the  same  meeting  of  Hanover  Presbytery  at  Lower  Hico  (1765), 
Eev.  Henry  Patillo  was  called  to  Hawfields,  Eno  and  Little  Eiver 
Churches,  which  he  served  for  nine  years.  In  1780  he  succeeded  Creswell 
as  pastor  of  Grassy  Creek  and  Nutbush.  Patillo,  a  native  of  Scotland, 
had  been  trained  in  theology  by  the  celebrated  Samuel  Davies,  then 
living  near  Eichmond,  Va.,  and  had  preached  for  six  years  in  that 
State.  His  ministry  in  Orange  and  Granville  continued  for  thirty-five 
years. 


Bev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  19 

Although  he  made  an  imprudently  early  marriage  in  1755,  and  lived 
in  a  "  house  sixteen  by  twelve  and  an  outside  chimney,  with  an  eight- 
foot  shed — a  little  chimney  to  it",  as  he  tells  us  in  his  journal,  a  house 
in  which  there  were  eleven  people,  six  of  whom  were  his  scholars,  on  the 
day  that  his  little  chimney  was  shattered  by  lightning;  and  although  he 
was  not  college  bred,  he  made  himself  one  of  the  best  educated  men  of 
his  time.  This  is  attested  by  the  fact  that,  in  1788,  thirty-two  years  after 
his  marriage,  and  twenty-nine  years  after  his  ordination,  he  received 
the  honorary  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  from  Hampden-Sidney  College. 
In  the  same  year  he  issued  from  the  press  at  Wilmington  a  volume 
of  sermons.  He  seems  to  have  used  his  pen  freely  and  a  number  of  man- 
uscripts on  various  religious  subjects  have  been  preserved,  but  the  most 
interesting  of  all  his  writings  is  his  Geographical  Catechism,  printed  in 
Halifax  in  1796,  "the  first  text-book  written  in  North  Carolina".  The 
original  manuscript  of  this  work  is  now  in  the  library  of  Union  Theologi- 
cal Seminary  at  Eichmond.  A  reprint  of  it  was  published  by  the  Uni- 
versity of  North  Carolina  in  1909.  Into  sixty-two  pages  he  has  packed 
an  astonishing  amount  of  information  about  astronomy,  the  air  and  the 
different  countries  of  the  world,  all  written  with  admirable  vivacity  and 
all  pervaded  by  a  profound  religious  spirit,  his  chief  purpose  being  to 
give  his  readers  more  just  conceptions  of  the  wonderful  works  of  God, 
as  he  states  in  the  preface. 

During  virtually  the  whole  of  his  adult  life,  he  was  a  teacher.  At 
Hawfields,  Williamsboro  and  Granville  Hall,  he  conducted  schools  which 
were  nurseries  not  only  of  learning  but  of  piety  and  patriotism  as  well. 

Like  Craighead,  who  laid  the  egg  of  independence ;  like  Balch,  who 
helped  to  hatch  it  in  the  Mecklenburg  Convention;  like  Hall  and  Hunter, 
who  bore  arms  in  the  field;  like  McCaule,  pastor  of  Center,  who  once  ran 
for  governor  and  fell  but  little  short  of  election,  and,  indeed,  like  all  the 
Presbyterian  ministers  of  those  stirring  times,  Patillo  took  an  active 
interest  in  public  affairs.  He  was  one  of  the  prominent  men  chosen 
by  Governor  Tryon  to  pacify  the  Regulators.  He  was  sent  as  a  delegate 
to  the  first  Provincial  Congress  of  North  Carolina  at  Hillsboro  in  1775; 
was  chosen  as  one  of  the  chaplains  of  that  body,  and  was  called  to  pro- 
side  in  the  Committee  of  the  Whole.  He  was  also  a  member  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Safety  for  the  Halifax  District. 

Not  the  least  of  Patillo 's  claims  to  honorable  mention  on  the  present 
occasion,  particularly,  is  the  fact  that  he  organized  Alamance  Church. 
That  was  in  the  year  1762,  one  hundred  and  fifty-one  years  ago. 

David   Caldwell 

In  the  year  1764,  Rev.  David  Caldwell,  a  young  licentiate  of  New 
Brunswick  Presbytery,  was  sent  to  North  Carolina  as  a  missionary,  and 
visited  Alamance  Church,  and  also  the  sister  church,  Buffalo,  which  had 
been  organized  in  1756.  He  did  not  come  as  a  stranger.  Many  of  these 
people  had  known  him  in  Pennsylvania  before  their  emigration  to 
North  Carolina,  while  he  was  preparing  for  college,  and,  when  they  left 
Pennsylvania,  they  had  themselves  suggested  that,  when  he  was  licensed, 
he  should  come  to  Carolina  and  be  their  minister.     And  so  it  came  about, 


20      The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Fresoyterian  Church 

though  it  was  not  till  1768  that  he  was  formally  installed  as  pastor,  Eev. 
Hugh  McAden  conducting  the  installation  service.  His  biographer,  Eev. 
Eli  W.  Caruthers,  who  was  also  his  successor  as  pastor  of  this  charge, 
says  he  exerted  a  more  extensive  and  lasting  influence  than  any  other 
man  belonging  to  that  eventful  period,  and  that  ' '  his  history  is  more 
identified  with  that  of  the  country — at  least  so  far  as  literature  and 
enlightened  piety  and  good  morals  are  concerned — than  the  history  of  any 
one  man  who  has  lived  in  it. ' '  For  that  reason,  as  well  as  for  the  reason 
that  he  was  for  sixty  years  the  minister  of  this  church  and  was  pastor 
of  it  when  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was  organized  in  1813,  it 
behooves  us  to  include  in  this  paper  at  least  a  brief  sketch  of  his  life 
and  work. 

He  was  born  in  Lancaster  County,  Pa.,  in  1724,  the  son  of  a  farmer 
in  good  circumstances.  He  was  reared  in  a  Christian  home  and  received 
the  rudiments  of  an  English  education.  He  then  served  as  an  apprentice 
to  a  house  carpenter  till  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age,  after  which  he 
worked  at  his  trade  for  four  years  on  his  own  account.  He  was  twenty- 
five  years  old  before  he  ever  saw  a  Latin  grammar,  but  his  heart  was 
set  on  the  ministry  and  he  labored  with  unwearied  perseverance  for  an 
education.  Let  the  young  men  of  this  hurried  age  note  the  fact  that 
he  was  thirty-six  years  old  when  he  received  his  degree  of  Bachelor  of 
Arts  at  Princeton  College.  After  teaching  school  for  a  year,  he  returned 
to  Princeton  and  served  as  tutor  in  the  college,  pursuing  at  the  same  time 
his  studies  in  theology. 

The  salary  promised  him  in  North  Carolina  was  only  two  hundred  dol- 
lars a  year,  but  by  the  cultivation  of  a  small  farm  and  by  the  teaching 
of  a  school,  he  managed  to  provide  comfortably  for  his  family.  As 
there  was  no  physician  in  the  neighborhood,  he  procured  the  necessary 
books  and  by  diligent  study  fitted  himself  for  the  practice  of  medicine, 
which  he  pursued  with  such  success  that  he  became  scarcely  less  cele- 
brated as  a  doctor  than  as  a  minister  and  teacher.  Blessed  with  a  pow- 
erful constitution  and  leading  a  temperate  life,  retiring  at  ten  and  rising 
at  four,  studying  diligently  in  the  early  hours  of  the  day,  getting  suffi- 
cient physical  exercise  by  labor  on  his  farm  and  by  pastoral  visitation, 
systematizing  the  work  of  his  large  school  and  his  two  large  congrega- 
tions, he  performed  his  multifarious  duties  as  preacher,  pastor,  physician 
and  teacher,  in  a  manner  which  entitles  him  to  a  unique  position  among 
the  makers  of  our  commonwealth. 

The  gracious  wisdom  and  tact  which  he  showed  as  a  very  young  man 
in  composing  the  differences  between  the  Old  Side  and  New  Side  parties 
in  his  two  congregations  were  but  an  earnest  of  his  invaluable  services 
throughout  his  long  life  as  an  adviser  and  mediator  in  both  private  and 
public  affairs.  Many  of  his  people  were  involved  in  the  struggle  of  the 
Begulators,  and  he  labored  to  the  last,  both  with  them  and  with  Governor 
Tryon,  to  prevent  the  shedding  of  blood,  and  on  the  morning  of  the 
disastrous  battle  on  the  Alamance  was  riding  along  the  lines,  urging  the 
men  to  go  home  without  violence,  when  the  command  to  fire  was  given. 
But  he  was  heart  and  soul  with  his  people  in  their  opposition  to  British 
tyranny.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Halifax  Convention  called  in  1776 
to  form  a  new  system  of  government.     His  active  advocacy  of  the  cause 


Bev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  21 

of  the  colonies  among  his  own  parishioners  made  all  the  men  of  his 
congregations  thorough-going  Whigs  and  rendered  him  so  obnoxious  to 
Lord  Cornwallis  that  he  offered  a  reward  of  two  hundred  pounds  for 
Caldwell 's  apprehension ;  and,  when  the  main  body  of  the  British  army 
encamped  for  a  time  on  his  plantation,  they  plundered  his  house,  burned 
his  books  and  valuable  papers,  destroyed  his  property  and  consumed  or 
carried  away  all  provisions.  Mrs.  Caldwell  and  her  young  children  were 
compelled  to  take  refuge  for  two  days  and  nights  in  the  smoke-house, 
with  no  food  except  a  few  dried  peaches  which  she  chanced  to  have  in 
her  pockets.  The  doctor  himself  had  lain  in  hiding  for  two  weeks  or 
more  in  the  wooded  low-grounds  of  North  Buffalo,  and  after  a  narrow 
escape  from  capture  had  made  his  way  to  General  Greene 's  camp.  The 
Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House,  which  was  fought  in  one  side  of  the 
Buffalo  congregation  and  within  two  or  three  miles  of  Dr.  Caldwell 's 
house,  was  the  beginning  of  the  end.  Cornwallis  retreated,  and  in  a  few 
months  his  surrender  at  Yorktown  gave  the  land  peace. 

An  ardent  patriot,  a  wise  counselor,  a  skilful  physician,  a  faithful 
pastor,  a  strong  preacher,  Dr.  Caldwell  rendered  services  of  the  most 
varied  and  valuable  character  to  his  generation;  but  in  no  capacity  did 
he  render  a  more  important  service  or  achieve  a  more  lasting  renown 
than  as  a  teacher  of  youth.  He  had  peculiar  tact  in  the  management 
of  boys  and  extraordinary  skill  in  the  development  of  their  powers,  so 
that  his  log  cabin  school,  opened  in  1767,  speedily  became  known  as  the 
most  efficient  institution  in  the  State.  Not  only  so,  it  attracted  students 
from  all  the  States  south  of  the  Potomac.  He  usually  had  fifty  or  sixty 
scholars,  a  large  number  for  the  time  and  circumstances  of  the  country. 
He  was  ' '  instrumental  in  bringing  more  men  into  the  learned  professions 
than  any  other  man  of  his  day,  at  least  in  the  Southern  States.  Many 
of  these  became  eminent  as  statesmen,  lawyers,  judges,  physicians  and 
ministers  of  the  Gospel. ' '  Five  of  them  became  governors  of  states, 
including  the  late  Governor  Morehead,  of  North  Carolina.  About  fifty 
of  them  became  ministers,  having  received  from  him  their  whole  theologi- 
cal as  well  as  literary  training.  Among  these  were  Bev.  Samuel  E. 
McCorkle,  of  Bowan,  already  referred  to ;  and  Bev.  John  Matthews,  who 
succeeded  Patillo  as  pastor  of  Nutbush  and  Grassy  Creek,  and  later 
founded  the  theological  seminary  at  New  Albany,  Indiana,  which  was 
afterwards  moved  to  Chicago  and  is  now  known  as  McCormick  Semi- 
nary. 

That  so  many  young  men  entered  the  ministry  from  this  school  was 
due  in  large  part  to  Dr.  Caldwell's  wife.  In  1766,  he  had  married 
Bachel  Craighead,  the  third  daughter  of  B-ev.  Alexander  Craighead,  of 
Sugar  Creek,  whom  he  had  known  as  a  child  in  Pennsylvania  some  fifteen 
years  before.  She  bore  him  twelve  children,  and  vastly  increased  the 
usefulness  of  his  life  in  other  ways.  The  current  saying  through  the 
country  was,  ' '  Dr.  Caldwell  makes  the  scholars  and  Mrs.  Caldwell  makes 
the  ministers". 

Dr.  Caldwell  died  in  1824,  in  his  one -hundredth  year,  leaving  to  these 
congregations  and  the  Synod  and  the  State  the  memory  of  a  consecrated 
life,  of  varied  talents  wisely  used,  and  of  a  busy  and  beneficent  career  in 
the  service  of  God  and  his  fellowmen. 


22       The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

Mr.  Moderator:  I  have  deliberately  taken  the  risk  of  wearying 
the  Synod  with  this  great  mass  of  local  and  personal  details,  because 
I  believed  that  it  was  only  in  this  way  we  could  get  any  vivid  impression 
of  the  amount  of  labor  performed  by  the  fathers  of  our  Church  in  this 
State — such  as  Campbell  and  McAden,  Craighead  and  Hall,  Patillo  and 
Caldwell — and  any  just  idea  of  the  value  of  their  services  in  propa- 
gating a  pure  and  strong  religion,  in  bearing  almost  the  whole  burden 
of  education  in  the  formative  period  of  our  history,  in  determining  so 
largely  the  staunch  character  of  the  people  of  this  aommonwealth  and  in 
promoting  the  cause  of  civil  and  religious  liberty.  "Without  any 
disposition  to  disparage  the  labors  or  the  influence  of  others,  it  is 
believed  that  North  Carolina  is  more  indebted  to  their  enlightened  and 
Christian  efforts  for  the  character  which  she  has  ever  since  sustained  for 
intelligence,  probity  and  good  order  than  to  any  other  cause. ' ' 

The  Succession  of  Church  Courts 

As  to  the  Church  courts,  under  whose  auspices  the  early  work  of  our 
church  in  North  Carolina  was  clone,  we  have  already  seen  that  the  early 
missionaries  were  sent  into  this  region  by  the  Synods  and  Presbyteries 
centering  about  Philadelphia  and  New  York.  In  1755,  the  year  of 
McAden 's  tour,  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  was  formed,  embracing  the 
whole  South,  North  Carolina  included.  Four  meetings  of  Hanover  Pres- 
bytery were  held  in  this  state — one  at  Lower  Hico  (Barnett's)  in  1765, 
one  at  North  Hico  (Grier's)  in  1766,  and  two  at  Buffalo  in  1768  and 
1770  respectively.  In  September,  1770,  Orange  Presbytery  was  formed 
at  Hawfields  Church,  in  Orange  County,  with  seven  ministers — McAden, 
Patillo,  Creswell,  Caldwell,  Joseph  Alexander,  Hezekiah  Balch  and  Heze- 
kiah  J.  Balch — and  about  forty  or  fifty  churches,  with  a  membership  of 
perhaps  two  thousand.  In  1784,  the  Presbytery  of  South  Carolina  was 
set  off  from  Hanover  with  six  ministers.  In  1788,  the  year  in  which  the 
General  Assembly  was  organized,  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  was  erected 
and  held  its  first  meeting  in  Center  Church  in  Iredell,  David  Caldwell 
preaching  the  opening  sermon  and  presiding  as  moderator.  In  1795, 
the  Presbytery  of  Concord,  embracing  the  territory  west  of  the  Yadkin, 
was  set  off  with  twelve  ministers :  Samuel  McCorkle,  James  Hall,  James 
McEee,  David  Barr,  Samuel  C.  Caldwell,  James  Wallis,  J.  D.  Kilpatrick, 
L.  F.  Wilson,  John  Carrigan,  Humphrey  Hunter,  J.  M.  Wilson  and 
Alexander  Caldwell.  In  1812,  the  Presbytery  of  Fayetteville  was  set  off 
from  Orange  with  eight  ministers — Samuel  Stanford,  Win.  L.  Turner, 
Malcolm  McNair,  Murdock  McMillan,  John  Mclntyre,  William  Meroney, 
Allen  McDougald  and  William  Peacock — and  held  its  first  meeting  at 
Center  Church  in  Eobeson  County,  October  21,  1813.  The  Synod  of 
the  Carolinas  existed  for  twenty-four  years  and  was  then  divided  in  1812 
into  two  Synods — the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  and  the  Synod  of  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia.  The  Synod  of  North  Carolina  held  its  first  meet- 
ing in  Alamance  Church  on  October  7,  1813,  and  it  is  the  centennial  anni- 
versary of  this  event  which  we  celebrate  today.  There  were  twelve  min- 
isters present  at  that  meeting  a  hundred  years  ago — David  Caldwell, 
Eobert    H.    Chapman,    James    W.    Thompson,    William    Paisley,    Samuel 


Bev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  23 

Paisley,  Kobert  Tate,  Murdoek  McMillan,  John  Mclntyre,  James  Hall, 
Samuel  C.  Caldwell,  John  M.  Wilson,  and  John  Eobinson — and  three  rul- 
ing elders— Hugh  Forbes,  John  McDonald  and  William  Carrigan.  The 
opening  sermon  was  preached  by  Rev.  James  Hall,  D.  D.,  from  the  text, 
"Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,"  and 
Rev.  R.  H.  Chapman,  D.  D.,  was  elected  moderator  and  also  stated  clerk. 

Growth  of  the  Synod  from  1813  to  1863 

The  Synod  thus  organized  was  composed  of  the  three  Presbyteries  of 
Orange,  Concord,  and  Fayetteville,  and  comprised  thirty-one  ministers, 
eighty-five  churches,  and  about  four  thousand  communicants.  By  1832, 
there  were  sixty-four  ministers,  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  churches, 
and  about  eight  thousand  communicants — that  is,  the  number  of  both 
ministers  and  members  had  doubled  in  twenty  years,  and  the  number  of 
churches  had  increased  by  forty-two.  In  1860,  when  the  Synod  met  at 
Statesville,  there  were  three  Presbyteries,  ninety-two  ministers,  one  hun- 
dred and  eighty-four  churches,  and  about  fifteen  thousand  six  hundred 
communicants;  that  is,  in  about  thirty  years  there  had  been  a  gain 
of  twenty-eight  ministers  (less  than  one  a  year),  fifty-seven  churches 
(only  about  two  a  year)  ;  but  the  number  of  communicants  had  again 
nearly  doubled.  Then  the  country  was  plunged  into  war  and  the  growth 
of  the  church  was  rudely  checked.  In  the  half  century  stretching  from 
1813  to  1863,  the  number  of  churches  had  more  than  doubled,  the  num- 
ber of  ministers  had  trebled,  and  the  number  of  communicants  had 
grown  from  four  thousand  to  nearly  sixteen  thousand,  a  fourfold 
increase ;  but  during  the  four  years  of  conflict  in  the  60  'a  the  Synod 
gained  only  eight  ministers  and  five  churches,  and  lost  more  than  two 
thousand  communicants,  mostly  young  men,  the  strength  and  hope  of 
the  church,  who  were  killed  in  battle  or  died  in  prison. 

Special  Features  of  the  Church  's  Work 

This  sketch  of  the  history  of  our  church  in  North  Carolina  during 
the  one  hundred  and  twenty  years  from  the  time  that  William  Robinson 
preached  the  first  Presbyterian  sermon  in  the  State  (1742)  to  the  time 
of  our  Civil  War  would  not  be  complete  even  as  a  bird 's  eye  view  without 
a  more  definite  mention  of  certain  special  features. 

Political 

1.  The  services  rendered  by  our  ministers  and  people  in  the  struggle 
for  national  independence. 

The  revolt  of  the  American  colonies  was  spoken  of  in  England  as  a 
Presbyterian  rebellion.  When  Horace  Walpole  said,  ' '  Cousin  America 
has  run  away  with  a  Presbyterian  parson",  he  was  doubtless  referring 
particularly  to  Rev.  Dr.  John  Witherspoon,  President  of  Princeton,  whose 
speech  in  the  Colonial  Congress  swept  the  waverers  to  a  decision  in 
favor  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  who  was  the  only  minister 
of  any  denomination  who  signed  that  immortal  document.  But  it  was  a 
remark  that  might  well  have  been  made  with  the  Presbyterian  ministers 
of  North  Carolina  in  view.     These  thoughtful  and  consecrated  men  well 


24      The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  'Presbyterian  Church 

knew  that  with  the  common  course  of  polities  ministers  should  have  noth- 
ing to  do  in  the  pulpit;  but  they  believed  also  that  there  were  crises 
which  justified  their  intervention  as  ministers,  when  everything  was  at 
stake,  including  even  their  right  to  worship  God  according  to  their  own 
understanding  of  His  requirements,  and  that  "measures  of  government 
that  proceed  from  a  want  of  moral  principle,  that  are  fraught  with 
injustice  and  corruption ' ',  and  that  involve  the  destruction  of  civil 
liberty  and  freedom  of  conscience,  ' '  are  as  legitimate  objects  of  denun- 
ciation and  warning  from  the  pulpit  as  anything  else. ' '  And  they  acted 
on  the  belief.  They  instructed  the  people  in  their  rights.  They  called 
them  to  arms  in  defense  of  their  liberties.  They  sat  in  the  councils  of 
state.  They  endured  the  privations  of  the  camp  and  the  fatigues  of 
the  march,  and  they  fought  beside  their  parishioners  on  the  fields  of 
bloody  strife.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  American  Eevolution 
could  not  have  succeeded  but  for  the  Presbyterian  ministers.  While 
some  denominations  in  Carolina  were  opposed  to  war  under  any  circum- 
stances, and  therefore  preferred  submission  to  armed  resistance;  and 
while  the  clergy  of  some  other  denominations  supported  the  Crown  and 
bitterly  opposed  the  movements  for  independence,  the  Presbyterian  min- 
isters throughout  the  whole  country  gave  to  the  cause  of  the  colonies  all 
that  they  could  give  of  the  sanction  of  religion,  and  wherever  a  minister 
of  that  denomination  was  settled,  the  people  around  him  were  Whigs 
almost  to  a  man.  This  is  now  gratefully  recognized  by  our  brethren  of 
all  denominations,  and  whatever  the  indifference  or  shortcomings  or 
hostility  of  their  own  ministers  to  the  people 's  cause  in  the  Eevolutionary 
struggle,  they  all  now  alike  honor  the  Presbyterian  ministers  who  de- 
nounced the  oppressions  of  the  mother  country  and  fired  the  hearts  of 
the  people  to  resistance  and  fought  and  suffered  to  secure  the  freedom 
in  which  all  alike  rejoice  today. 

Apologetic 

2.  The  services  of  our  ministers  in  stemming  the  tide  of  French 
infidelity  which   swept   over   our   country   after   the   Eevolutionary  War. 

As  a  result  of  the  timely  aid  given  us  by  France  in  our  struggle  with 
Great  Britain,  the  citizens  of  the  new  republic  were  kindly  disposed 
towards  the  French  people,  and  were,  therefore,  the  more  ready  to  give  a 
sympathetic  hearing  even  to  their  skeptical  philosophy.  The  country  was 
flooded  with  their  infidel  publications.  Many  of  our  people  and  at  least 
one  of  our  ministers,  afterwards  a  professor  in  the  State  University, 
were  swept  from  their  ancestral  faith.  But  the  great  body  of  our  min- 
isters were  not  only  unaffected  by  it  themselves,  but  withstood  it 
boldly  and  successfully,  and  in  the  end  rolled  back  the  tide  and  rescued 
their  people.  Being  well-trained  and  well-equipped,  they  brought  all 
the  resources  of  their  learning  and  all  the  force  of  their  logic  to  the 
contest,  and  eventually  routed  the  disciples  of  Voltaire  and  Paine,  and  so 
saved  their  country  alike  from  the  horrible  demoralization  of  infidel 
France  and  the  paralyzing  unbelief  of  Unitarian  Xew  England.  Witness 
the  work  of  James  Wallis  at  Providence  in  counteracting  the  influence 
of  the  talented  and  wealthy  debating  society  of  infidels  in  his  neighbor- 


Rev.  W.  W.  Moore,  LL.D.  25 

hood,  with  its  baleful  circulating  library — and  the  work  of  Samuel  C. 
Caldwell  at  Sugar  Creek,  and  of  Joseph  Caldwell  at  Chapel  Hill,  the  first 
president  of  the  University — and  many  others.  The  educated  ministry 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  had  come  to  the  kingdom  for  such  a  time 
as  that. 

Eevival 

3.  The  Growth  of  the  Church  in  Periods  of  Eevival.  The  revival 
in  Eev.  Dr.  James  Hall 's  congregations  in  Iredell,  just  after  the  Bevolu- 
tionary  War,  has  already  been  referred  to.  A  much  more  extensive 
revival,  which  began  about  1791,  under  the  preaching  of  Eev.  James 
McGready,  continued  for  some  years  in  what  is  now  the  upper  part 
of  Orange  Presbytery,  affecting  the  congregations  of  Hawfields,  Cross 
Eoads,  Alamance,  Buffalo,  Stony  Creek,  Bethlehem,  Haw  Eiver,  Eno, 
the  churches  on  Hico  and  the  waters  of  the  Dan,  and  also  those  in 
Granville.  In  connection  with  this  revival,  the  first  camp  meeting  in 
North  Carolina  was  held  at  Hawfields  in  1801,  the  people  coming  from  a 
distance  in  their  wagons  and  remaining  for  five  days.  Such  meetings 
soon  became  common  all  over  the  south  and  west.  From  the  churches  of 
Orange  Presbytery,  the  interest  spread  to  those  of  Concord  and  Fay- 
etteville  Presbyteries.  In  a  long  and  interesting  letter  written  by 
Dr.  James  Hall  in  1802,  he  describes  a  meeting  in  Eandolph  County  in 
January  of  that  year  which  he  and  three  other  ministers  of  Concord 
Presbytery  attended  with  about  one  hundred  of  their  people,  traveling 
fifty  to  eighty  miles  on  horseback  and  in  wagons  for  that  purpose; 
another  in  the  same  month  in  Iredell,  conducted  by  eight  Presbyterian, 
one  Baptist  and  two  Methodist  ministers,  and  attended  by  four  thousand 
people,  notwithstanding  the  inclement  wintry  weather;  another  near  Mor- 
ganton ;  another  of  five  days  in  Iredell  in  March,  conducted  by  twenty- 
six  ministers  (seventeen  Presbyterians,  three  Methodists,  two  Baptists, 
two  German  Lutherans,  one  Dutch  Calvinist,  and  one  Episcopalian), 
when  there  were  eight  thousand  to  ten  thousand  people  present  on  Sun- 
day, divided  into  four  worshiping  assemblies;  another  two  weeks  later 
in  Mecklenburg  almost  as  largely  attended;  another  in  May  near  the 
Guilford  and  Eowan  boundary.  The  writer  says:  "We  are  extremely 
happy  in  the  coalescence  of  our  Methodist  and  Baptist  brethren  with  us 
in  this  great  and  good  work.  Party  doctrines  are  laid  aside  and  nothing 
heard  from  the  pulpit  but  the  practical  and  experimental  doctrines  of 
the  gospel. ' ' 

In  these  meetings  hundreds  of  people  were  deeply  affected  and 
great  numbers  were  added  to  the  churches.  But,  as  in  Kentucky  and 
elsewhere,  the  judicious  ministers  were  not  a  little  perplexed  by  the 
"bodily  exercises"  with  which  the  religious  excitement  was  connected, 
when,  as  if  by  an  electric  shock,  men,  women  and  children,  white  ana 
black,  learned  and  ignorant,  indifferent  and  skeptical,  robust  and  deli- 
cate, would  be  struck  down,  crying  for  mercy,  or  lie  motionless  and 
speechless  sometimes  for  five  hours ;  for  it  was  observed  that  ' '  persons 
who  had  no  sense  of  religion  were  seized  by  them  both  at  places  of  public 
worship  and  while  about  their  ordinary  business,  and  sometimes  were  left 
as  unconcerned  as  ever. ' '     The  ministers  studied  these  phenomena  closely, 


26      The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

generally  discountenanced  them,  and  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  them 
gradually  disappear  while  the  real  religious  interest  continued. 

As  a  result  of  these  meetings,  the  existing  churches  were  greatly 
enlarged,  new  congregations  were  formed,  and  many  ministers  of  the 
Gospel  were  raised  up.  ' '  Throughout  Carolina,  wherever  the  revival  pre- 
vailed, the  community  received  unspeakable  blessings. ' ' 

In  1832,  there  were  again  notable  revivals  in  various  parts  of  the 
Synod,  especially  in  Concord  and  Orange  Presbyteries.  "It  is  said  that 
one  hundred  and  sixty-three  persons  were  added  to  Eocky  Eiver  Church, 
one  hundred  and  twenty-six  to  Poplar  Tent  and  Bamah,  and  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  to  Charlotte  and  Sugar  Creek  Churches.  It  is  estimated 
that  there  were  two  thousand  conversions  within  the  bounds  of  the  Synod, 
and  that  six  hundred  of  them  were  in  the  counties  of  Mecklenburg  and 
Cabarrus." — (Craig:  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North 
Carolina,  24.) 

Missionary 

4.  The  curious  contrast  between  the  activity  of  the  Church  in  Home 
Missions  before  the  Revolution  and  the  comparative  neglect  of  this  work 
after  the  Revolution. 

The  gospel  was  faithfully  preached  to  the  churches  already  organized, 
but  for  a  good  many  years  there  seem  to  have  been  no  settled  plans 
and  no  systematic  and  persistent  efforts  to  carry  the  work  into  the  regions 
beyond.  The  Synod  was  not  marching  but  marking  time.  Napoleon 
Bonaparte  said,  ' '  The  army  that  remains  in  its  trenches  is  beaten, ' '  and 
our  Church  had  to  pay  the  inevitable  penalty  for  its  inactivity  during 
the  early  decades  of  the  Nineteenth  Century.  It  lost  many  golden  oppor- 
tunities, and  our  more  active  brethren  of  other  denominations,  to  their 
lasting  honor,  came  in  and  possessed  much  of  the  territory  which  should 
have  been  evangelized  by  the  church  which  was  first  on  the  field,  which 
for  long  had  the  largest  numbers,  and  which  has  always  had  the  largest 
resources  and  the  best  trained  ministers.  There  were,  of  course,  occas- 
ional creditable  exceptions  in  both  Foreign  and  Home  Missions,  the  most 
notable  of  which  was  the  work  of  a  young  man  fresh  from  Union  Semi- 
nary, Daniel  Lindley  by  name,  who  became  pastor  of  Rocky  River  in 
1832,  and  in  less  than  three  years  received  into  the  church  two  hundred 
and  fifty-two  members.  It  is  said  (Morrison  Caldwell:  Historical 
Sketch  of  Eocky  River  Church)  that  "he  felt  called  to  carry  the  gospel 
to  the  forgotten  people  of  the  mountains  of  North  Carolina",  but  that 
Concord  Presbytery  denied  him  that  privilege.  If  that  be  true,  it  was 
one  of  the  most  disastrous  and  far-reaching  mistakes  a  Presbytery  ever 
made.  But  the  missionary  spirit  which  Lindley  had  imbibed  from  John 
Holt  Rice  was  strong  within  him  and  would  not  be  thwarted.  He  sailed 
for  South  Africa,  taking  with  him  Dr.  Alexander  E.  Wilson,  of  Eocky 
Eiver,  and  for  forty  years  labored  in  the  Dark  Continent  to  the  everlast- 
ing good  both  of  the  native  Zulus  and  the  Dutch  Boers.  When  he 
returned  to  America  in  1874,  I  was  a  freshman  in  college  and  heard  him 
make  a  moving  address  in  the  Old  Chapel  (now  Shearer  Biblical  Hall) 
at  Davidson. 


Rev.  TV.  TV.  Moore,  LL.D.  27 

There  were  doubtless  other  instances  of  genuine  missionary  zeal  and 
activity  in  both  the  Home  and  Foreign  work,  but  the  fire  did  not  spread, 
and  the  splendid  advance  of  the  Synod  as  a  whole  on  both  these  lines 
has  been  the  achievement  of  a  later  day. 

Educational 

5.  The  noble  record  of  our  Church  in  Christian  Education.  This 
subject  has  been  very  properly  given  a  separate  place  on  the  programme 
of  this  celebration  and  will  be  fully  treated  by  the  able  speakers  to 
whom  it  has  been  assigned,  so  that  nothing  more  than  a  passing  glance 
at  it  is  called  for  here.  The  view  taken  by  our  Presbyterian  forefathers 
of  the  relations  between  the  Church  and  education  was  this: 

' '  She  dreads  no  skeptic 's  puny  hands 
While  near  her  school  the  church  spire  stands, 
Nor  fear's  the  blinded  bigot 's  rule 
While  near  her  church  spire  stands  the  school. ' ' 

Hence  that  remarkable  succession  of  classical  schools  to  which  for  so 
long  a  time  the  State  was  indebted  for  nearly  the  whole  of  its  education 
beyond  the  mere  rudiments  of  English — Queen's  Museum  (afterwards 
Liberty  Hall)  at  Charlotte,  Grove  Academy  in  Duplin,  the  schools  of 
Tate  at  Wilmington,  Bingham  in  Orange,  Patillo  in  Granville,  Caldwell 
in  Guilford,  Hall  at  Bethany,  McCaule  at  Center,  McCorkle  at  Thyatira, 
Wilson  at  Bocky  Eiver,  and  Wallis  at  Providence — the  forerunners  of 
all  our  present  institutions  of  higher  learning.  When  the  State  University 
was  projected,  the  people  naturally  looked  to  the  Presbyterians  to  do 
the  work.  They  did  it.  The  institution  has  been  in  existence  for  one 
hundred  and  twenty-four  years.  During  the  whole  of  this  period,  with 
the  exception  of  only  twenty  years,  its  presidents  have  been  Presbyterians, 
and  a  large  proportion  of  its  professors  as  well.  The  first  president  and  the 
real  father  of  the  institution,  Eev.  Joseph  Caldwell,  not  only  founded  the 
University  firmly,  but  stemmed  the  tide  of  infidelity  there  after  the 
defection  of  Kerr  and  Holmes,  and  put  the  abiding  stamp  of  religion 
upon  its  character. 

The  only  educational  institution  that  has  ever  been  under  the  direct 
care  and  control  of  the  Synod  as  such  is  the  theological  seminary  formerly 
at  Hampden-Sidney  and  now  at  Eichmond.  In  1827,  this  Synod  and  the 
Synod  of  Virginia  associated  themselves  in  the  joint  ownership  and 
control  of  the  institution,  and  in  commemoration  of  the  alliance  it  was 
given  the  name  of  Union  Seminary.  For  eighty-six  years  the  relation 
has  been  one  of  unbroken  harmony  and  of  abounding  advantage  to 
the  Seminary  and  the  Synod.  The  Synod  has  supported  the  Seminary 
with  unwavering  loyalty  and  generosity,  and  the  Seminary  has  supplied 
the  Synod  with  the  great  majority  of  its  ministers.  Of  the  235  min- 
isters now  on  your  roll,  135  were  trained  at  Union  Seminary;  that  is, 
nearly  two-thirds  of  the  whole  number. 

Ten  years  after  the  action  in  regard  to  the  Seminary,  that  is,  in 
1837,  the  Presbyterians  of  North  Carolina  took  another  great  creative 
step  in  educational  work  by  founding  Davidson  College.     As  a  result  of 


28       The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

these  two  movements,  they  have  long  had  and  have  today  the  largest 
and  most  fruitful  of  all  our  theological  seminaries  and  the  largest  and 
most  fruitful  of  all  our  Christian  colleges. 

One  other  educational  factor  of  great  importance  which  came  into 
existence  in  the  period  assigned  to  this  sketch  is  The  North  Carolina 
Presbyterian,  now  known  as  the  Prebyterian  Standard,  which  was  estab- 
lished in  1858,  and  which  for  fifty-six  years  has  informed  and  instructed 
and  edified  our  people. 

These  then,  fathers  and  brethren,  are  some  of  the  salient  features  of 
the  history  of  our  Church  in  this  State  during  the  one  hundred  and 
twenty  years  from  the  beginning  by  Eobinson,  the  first  missionary,  down 
to  the  year  1863.  It  is  a  history  that  we  do  well  to  cherish,  for  it 
will  move  us  to  profound  gratitude  to  God  for  the  gift  of  this  land  to 
our  fathers  and  for  the  gift  of  our  fathers  to  this  land;  it  will 
remind  us  that  we  are  the  sons  of  noble  sires,  men  who  played  the 
leading  part  in  forming  the  character  and  institutions  af  this  com- 
monwealth; it  will  thrill  us  with  the  thought  that  the  heritage  of 
truth  and  freedom  and  opportunities  for  service  which  they  bequeathed 
to  us  is  not  only  a  legacy  but  a  summons,  and  that  we  can  best 
honor  their  memory  by  emulating  their  services;  and  it  will  inspire 
us  with  the  ambition  to  transmit  this  heritage  to  our  posterity  not 
only  undiminished  but  enlarged.  As  we  enter  upon  the  second  cen- 
tury of  our  existence  as  a  separate  Synod,  let  us  hear  across  the 
century  the  earnest  voice  of  Hall,  uttering  in  the  old  yellow  frame 
building  near  this  spot  in  1813  the  words  of  the  great  commission,  "Go 
ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature ; ' '  and  let 
us  resolve  with  all  our  hearts  to  obey  that  commission,  to  replenish  the 
ranks  of  our  ministry  with  the  choicest  of  our  youth,  to  seek  earnestly 
the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost  promised  by  our  Lord,  and  to  be  faithful 
witnesses  unto  Him  both  in  Jerusalem  and  in  all  Judea  and  in  Samaria 
and  unto  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth. 


29 


THE   BEGINNINGS   AND   DEVELOPMENT    OF    PRES- 
BYTEPJANP3M  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA  TO  1863 


PROF.    WALTER   L.    LINGLE,    D.    D. 
Union  Theological   Seminary,   Richmond,  Va. 


It  is  not  my  purpose  today  to  address  myself  to  those  who  know  the 
history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina.  That  would  be 
entirely  unnecessary.  Besides,  this  is  not  a  meeting  of  a  historical 
society.  I  wish  the  rather  to  speak  to  those  who  do  not  know  it  and 
especially  to  the  young  people  who  are  present.  I  shall  therefore  not 
consider  it  necessary  to  make  apologies  to  the  historians  who  are  present 
if  I  deal  with  some  things  which  may  seem  elementary  to  them.  With 
this  brief  statement  let  us  proceed  at  once  with  the  subject  assigned 
for  this  hour. 

I.     Our  Presbyterian  Ancestors 

The  earliest  Presbyterian  settlers  in  North  Carolina  were  Scotch-Irish 
and  Scotch.  Not  only  so,  but  from  the  beginning  to  the  present  hour 
the  Scotch-Irish  and  Scotch  have  constituted  the  predominant  element 
in  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina. 

Who  were  the  Scotch-Irish? 

Since  I  was  invited  to  make  this  address,  I  suppose  I  have  asked  this 
question  of  a  dozen  intelligent  people,  but  have  not  received  a  satis- 
factory answer. 

The  story  is  a  long  one  but  is  full  of  thrilling  interest  from  start  to 
finish.  It  really  begins  back  in  the  days  of  Henry  VIII,  King  of  Eng- 
land. Henry  came  to  the  throne  in  1509,  only  eight  years  before  the 
Eeformation  began  under  the  leadership  of  Martin  Luther.  At  that 
time  England,  Scotland  and  Ireland  were  Roman  Catholic  to  the  core. 
Henry  was  not  in  sympathy  with  the  Reformation  and  threw  the  weight 
of  his  influence  against  it,  but  when  the  Pope  of  Rome  refused  to  grant 
his  divorce  from  Catherine  of  Aragon  just  as  he  wanted  it,  he  broke 
with  Rome  in  1536,  declared  himself  the  head  of  the  church  in  Eng- 
land and  Ireland,  and  began  a  reformation  all  of  his  own,  which 
was  more  political  than  religious.  England  fell  into  line  in  a  way 
that  was  fairly  satisfactory  to  Henry,  but  Ireland  refused  to  make 
the  break  with  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  Henry  proceeded  to  compel 
her  to  do  so  and  as  a  result  Henry  had  trouble  in  Ireland  all  the  days 
of  his  life.  His  daughter,  Queen  Elizabeth,  inherited  this  trouble. 
Her  policy  towards  Ireland  was  more  conciliatory  than  that  of  her 
father  and  she  met  with  better  success  in  establishing  peace  in  Ireland. 
Yet  Ireland  remained  almost  solidly  Catholic.  When  James  I  succeeded 
Elizabeth  in  1603  there  were  violent  outbreaks  and  conspiracies  in  Ire- 


30  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

land,  especially  in  the  northern  part,  against  his  rule.  James  dealt 
with  these  conspiracies  with  an  iron  hand.  As  a  result,  six  whole 
counties  in  the  north  of  Ireland  in  the  province  of  Ulster  were  practi- 
cally depopulated  and  confiscated  by  James.  These  counties  covered  an 
area  of  a  half  million  acres. 

During  the  century  in  which  all  this  was  going  on,  John  Knox  and 
his  co-workers  had  made  Scotland  a  great  Presbyterian  stronghold.  In 
the  meantime  England  had  also  become  strongly  Protestant.  James  hit 
upon  a  bright  idea.  It  was  suggested  by  no  less  a  personage  than  Lord 
Bacon,  the  great  philosopher,  and  that  was  to  send  over  large  Protestant 
colonies  from  England  and  Scotland  to  take  possession  of  these  counties 
in  the  north  of  Ireland,  with  the  hope  that  this  leaven  would  leaven  the 
whole  lump.  As  Scotland  lay  closer  to  Ireland,  and  for  other  reasons 
which  we  need  not  mention  here,  the  great  majority  of  these  colonists 
settling  in  Ireland  went  from  Scotland.  These  Scotchmen  took  their 
Presbyterian  faith  with  them.  However,  it  must  not  be  supposed  that 
they  were  all  devout  Christians.  Many  were  far  from  it.  But  Pres- 
byterian ministers  and  evangelists  went  over  from  Scotland  and  great 
revivals  followed  in  which  thousands  were  converted.  Churches  were 
built  and  Presbyteries  were  organized.  By  1660  there  were  five  Pres- 
byteries in  Ulster  with  100,000  Presbyterian  communicants. 

These  Scotchmen  in  the  north  of  Ireland  and  their  descendants  came 
to  be  known,  especially  in  America,  as  the  Scotch-Irish  and  must  be 
sharply  distinguished  from  the  Scotch  who  have  never  lived  in  Ireland. 

This  in  the  very  briefest  way  gives  us  the  origin  of  the  Scotch-Irish. 
For  the  first  hundred  years  after  their  migration  to  Ireland  these 
Scotch-Irishmen  got  on  in  a  fairly  satisfactory  way  with  the  English 
government,  but  in  1704  troublous  days  began  with  the  enactment  of 
the  Test  Act,  which  compelled  every  person  holding  a  position  under 
the  crown  to  take  communion  in  the  Established  Church,  which  was  the 
Episcopal  Church,  within  three  months  after  entering  an  office.  You 
can  imagine  the  effect  of  such  a  law  on  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians. 
Later  there  followed  other  forms  of  tyranny.  In  addition  to  this,  the 
grain  crops  failed  in  Ireland  for  several  successive  seasons.  These 
Scotch-Irishmen  began  to  turn  their  faces  to  America,  whither  friends 
had  gone  from  time  to  time.  Then  began  one  of  the  greatest  emigra- 
tion movements  of  modern  times.  For  sixty  years  the  Scotch-Irish 
poured  across  the  Atlantic  in  one  continuous  stream.  It  has  been  esti- 
mated that  from  1713  to  1775  fully  600,000  of  them  came  from  north 
Ireland  to  our  American  shores. 

Some  of  these  landed  on  the  coast  of  New  England,  some  at  Charles- 
ton, South  Carolina,  but  the  great  body  of  them  found  their  way  up 
the  Delaware  Elver  to  Philadelphia  and  its  vicinity.  Many  of  them 
remained  in  and  around  Philadelphia,  others  went  down  to  the  eastern 
shores  of  Maryland  and  Virginia,  where  there  were  already  small  col- 
onies of  their  fellow  countrymen.  The  great  majority  of  them  moved 
towards  the  western  frontier  of  Pennsylvania.  From  there  they  passed 
over  into  Maryland  and  across  the  Potomac  into  the  valley  of  Virginia. 
From   ATirginia    they   passed   on    into    North    Carolina,    South   Carolina, 


Prof.   Walter  L.  Lingle,  D.  D.  31 

Georgia  and  Alabama,  until  they  came  to  the  colonies  formed  by  the 
Scotch-Irish  who  had  landed  at  Charleston  and  made  their  way  inland. 

This  tide  of  emigration  left  three  great  settlements  of  Scotch-Irish  in 
North  Carolina.  The  oldest  of  these  was  the  settlement  in  Duplin  and 
New  Hanover  Counties,  made  under  the  leadership  of  Henry  McCulloch 
about  1736.  There  was  another  large  settlement  along  the  Hico,  Eno 
and  Haw  Eivers  in  the  territory  now  occupied  by  Caswell,  Guilford, 
Alamance,  Orange  and  Granville  Counties.  The  third  settlement  was 
between  the  Yadkin  and  Catawba  Eivers,  sometimes  called  the  Mesopo- 
tamia of  North  Carolina,  in  the  territory  now  covered  by  Rowan,  Ire- 
dell, Cabarrus  and  Mecklenburg  Counties. 

We  cannot  give  the  dates  of  these  early  settlements  as  definitely  as 
we  could  wish,  but  we  can  get  some  conception  of  dates  and  of  the 
rapid  growth  of  the  population  in  these  settlements  from  the  dates  in 
which  the  counties  were  set  off  and  from  the  rapidity  with  which  this 
was  done.  In  1743  Granville  was  set  off  from  Edgecombe.  In  1749 
Anson  was  set  off  from  Bladen.  At  that  time  Granville  and  Anson 
included  all  the  western  part  of  the  State.  In  1751  Orange  was  set 
off  from  Granville  and  Bladen.  In  1753  Eowan  was  set  off  from  Anson. 
In  1762  Mecklenburg  was  set  off  from  Anson. 

I  have  now  given  you  in  the  shortest  possible  compass  a  bird's-eye 
view  of  our  Scotch-Irish  ancestors  and  of  the  way  in  which  they  began 
their  settlements  in  North  Carolina.  It  would  be  an  interesting  story  if 
there  were  only  time  to  tell  it  in  full. 

But  we  must  turn  now  and  look  at  another  very  important  colony 
of  our  Presbyterian  ancestors  who  came  into  North  Carolina  from 
another  direction  and  from  a  slightly  different  source.  The  Scotch 
began  to  come  into  North  Carolina,  by  the  way  of  Wilmington  and 
the  Cape  Fear  Eiver,  directly  from  Scotland,  at  a  very  early  period. 
In  fact,  nobody  knows  just  how  early.  They  were  certainly  here  as 
early  as  1729,  when  North  Carolina  and  South  Carolina  became  separate 
provinces.  Others  came  from  year  to  year.  But  the  great  tide  did  not 
set  in  until  after  the  battle  of  Culloden  in  1746.  You  will  remember 
that  the  battle  of  Culloden  was  fought  between  those  Scotch  who 
espoused  the  cause  of  Prince  Charles  Edward  in  his  efforts  to  gain  the 
British  Crown,  on  the  one  side,  and  the  troops  of  King  George  II  on 
the  other  side.  Charles  Edward  lost  the  battle  and  his  followers  were 
persecuted  without  mercy.  They  turned  their  faces  toward  America, 
where  they  might  have  civil  and  religious  liberty.  Great  numbers  of 
them  came.  Some  of  them  settled  in  South  Carolina,  some  in  Mary- 
land and  New  Jersey,  but  many  landed  at  Wilmington,  North  Carolina, 
made  their  way  up  the  Cape  Fear  Eiver,  and  occupied  a  large  section 
of   country   of   which   Cross   Creek    (now  Fayetteville)    was   the   center. 

These  were  genuine  Scotch  Highlanders  and  used  the  Gaelic  language 
in  their  homes  and  in  their  church  services  for  many  years  after  their 
settlement  in  North  Carolina.  Their  descendants  constitute  one  of  the 
strongest  elements  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  North  Carolina  today. 

I  have  now  shown  you  the  two  lines  of  our  Presbyterian  ancestors 
which  converged  and  made  the  one  great,  strong  church.  It  is  not 
necessary  that   I   should   stop   and   try  to    characterize   these    ancestors 


32  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

or  try  to  show  you  the  differences  in  temperament  between  the  Scotch 
and  the  Scotch-Irish.  These  are  all  well  set  forth  and  illustrated  in 
their  descendants  even  unto  this  day.  If  I  were  asked  to  characterize 
these  ancestors  of  ours  in  a  sentence  I  would  do  it  by  quoting  a  sen- 
tence from  a  recorded  prayer  of  an  old  Scotch-Irish  elder  in  which  he 
made  this  earnest  petition:  "Lord,  grant  that  I  may  always  be  right, 
for  Thou  knowest  I  am  hard  to  turn. ' ' 

II.     Some  Pioneer  Preachers 

North  Carolina  may  have  been  first  at  Bethel,  the  farthest  at  Gettys- 
burg, and  the  last  at  Appomattox,  but  we  will  have  to  humbly  confess 
that  she  did  not  have  the  first  Presbyterian  church  or  first  Presbyterian 
preacher  in  the  United  States.  So  if  we  wish  to  trace  intelligibly 
the  beginnings  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  we  will 
have  to  turn  aside  for  a  moment  and  look  at  the  beginning  and  devel- 
opment of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  America. 

In  1683  Eev.  Francis  Makemie,  a  Scotch-Irishman,  came  over  from 
Ireland  and  organized  some  churches  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Mary- 
land. These  are  the  first  Presbyterian  Churches  organized  in  America. 
Other  churches  were  soon  afterwards  formed  among  the  Scotch-Irish 
in  and  near  Philadelphia.  In  1705  the  first  Presbytery  in  America 
was  organized  at  Philadelphia,  with  Francis  Makemie  as  moderator. 
Other  Presbyteries  were  soon  formed.  In  1717  the  first  Synod  in 
America  was  organized  at  Philadelphia.  This  continued  to  be  the  only 
Synod  until  1741,  when  there  was  a  split  in  the  church  and  the  Synod 
of  New  York  was  organized.  The  split  came  about  in  what  may  seem 
to  us  a  very  peculiar  way.  A  great  revival  began  in  America  in  1735 
under  the  leadership  of  such  men  as  Jonathan  Edwards  and  George 
Whitefield.  A  number  of  Presbyterian  ministers  threw  themselves  heart 
and  soul  into  this  revival.  There  was  great  excitement  and  the  revival 
was  attended  by  shoutings  and  bodily  contortions  and  other  excesses. 
Many  conservative  Presbyterian  ministers  condemned  these  excesses 
in  the  strongest  terms.  Other  defended  them.  One  of  the  bitterest 
controversies  in  the  history  of  the  church  arose.  The  controversies  that 
rage  around  the  methods  of  Billy  Sunday  are  mild  compared  with  it. 
The  church  was  split.  Those  who  condemned  the  excesses  remained 
in  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia  and  were  known  as  the  ' '  Old  Side '  \ 
Those  who  defended  the  revival,  excesses  and  all,  went  out  and  formed 
the  Synod  of  New  York  and  were  known  as  the  ' '  New  Side ' '.  Happily, 
these  two  Synods  were  brought  together  again  in  1758  after  a  separation 
of  only  seventeen  years,  and  the  united  Synod  was  known  thereafter 
as  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia.  Although  the  Synods 
were  united,  the  old  and  new  side  differences  continued  to  be  a  ground 
of  controversy  for  many  years,  and  we  find  them  cropping  out  over  and 
over  again  in  the  early  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North 
Carolina. 

The  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  both  in  the  days  of  its 
union  and  in  the  days  of  its  division,  took  the  place  of  the  General 
Assembly  in  those  early  times,  when  there  was  no  Assembly,   and   all 


Prof.   Walter  L.  Linglr,  D.  D.  33 

the  Presbyteries  were  connected  with  it  except  an  independent  Presby- 
tery in  New  England  and  another  in  South  Carolina.  All  the  home 
missionary  work  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  was  done  through  the 
Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia. 

Prom  1744  onward  frequent  and  most  earnest  petitions  were  sent  by 
the  Presbyterians  of  North  Carolina  to  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Phil- 
adelphia, urging  and  pleading  that  ministers  and  missionaries  be  sent  to 
supply  them  with  the  preaching  of  the  gospel.  In  response  to  these  peti- 
tions there  is  no  doubt  that  ministers  were  sent,  of  whom  we  have  no 
record.  But  we  have  a  record  of  many,  and  a  most  interesting  and  glo- 
rious record  it  is.  We  must  now  glance  for  a  moment  at  some  of  these 
pioneer  preachers  who  came  in  response  to  these  Macedonian  cries  which 
went  up  to  Synod  year  by  year.  As  subsequent  speakers  are  to  tell  you 
of  the  personnel  of  these  early  ministers,  we  must  not  pause  long,  but  no 
history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  would  be  complete 
without  the  mention  of  a  few  of  these  names  and  an  item  about  each. 

Eev.  William  Bobinson  is  the  first  Presbyterian  minister  who  ever 
preached  in  North  Carolina,  so  far  as  the  record  goes.  He  was  a 
native  of  England,  but  came  to  America  at  an  early  age,  was  ordained 
in  New  Jersey,  and  came  to  Virginia  to  preach.  In  the  winter  of  1742 
and  1743  he  made  an  evangelistic  tour  into  North  Carolina,  but,  unfor- 
tunately, we  have  no  record  of  the  points  he  visited. 

In  1753  Mr.  McMordie  and  Mr.  Donaldson  were  sent  by  the  Synod 
of  Philadelphia  with  instructions  to  show  special  attention  to  the 
vacancies  between  the  "Atkin"  (Yadkin)  and  Catawba  Eivers.  In 
1 754  the  Synod  of  New  York  appointed  four  ministers,  Messrs.  Beatty, 
Bostwick,  Lewis  and  Thane,  each  to  spend  three  months  preaching  in 
North  Carolina.  Later  on  others  were  sent.  Some  were  of  the  ' '  old 
side ' ',  but  the  majority  of  them  belonged  to  the  more  aggressive  ' '  new 
side ' '. 

The  Eev.  Hugh  McAden  is  the  first  Presbyterian  preacher  who 
accomplished  a  really  great  work  in  North  Carolina.  He  was  born  in 
Pennsylvania  of  humble  Scotch-Irish  parents,  graduated  at  the  College 
of  New  Jersey,  afterwards  called  Princeton,  and  was  licensed  to  preach 
in  1755.  He  belonged  to  the  new  side.  Soon  after  his  licensure  he 
started  on  a  home  missionary  tour  to  North  Carolina,  preaching  as  he 
went.  Before  he  concluded  the  journey  he  had  preached  in  practically 
every  Presbyterian  settlement  in  North  Carolina.  His  diary  of  that 
journey  is  still  extant  and  is  full  of  interest.  A  number  of  churches 
gave  him  most  urgent  calls  to  settle  as  their  pastor.  One  of  these 
was  old  Thyatira  in  Eowan  County,  the  only  church  of  which  I  was  ever 
a  member.  When  he  had  completed  his  journey,  which  covered  the 
period  of  about  one  year,  he  accepted  a  call  from  the  Presbyterian  con- 
gregations of  Duplin  and  New  Hanover  and  settled  as  their  pastor  in 
1756  or  1757.  It  may  be  that  he  was  the  first  ordained  Presbyterian 
minister  to  settle  as  a  pastor  in  the  State.  He  spent  ten  years  in 
Duplin  and  then  removed  to  Caswell  County  and  became  pastor  of  old 
Eed  House  Church  (then  known  as  Middle  Hico)  and  supplied  several 
other  points.  Here' he  labored  until  his  death  in  1781.  His  body  lies 
buried  in  the  Eed  House  churchyard.  Two  weeks  after  his  death  the 
British  army  passed  through  Caswell,  ransacked  his  home   and  burned 


34  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

his  library  and  practically  all  his  valuable  papers.  The  British  had  no 
love  for  a  Presbyterian  minister,  living  or  dead. 

The  Eev.  James  Campbell  came  to  North  Carolina  in  1757  and 
settled  as  a  pastor  among  his  Scotch  brethren  on  the  Cape  Pear  near 
the  present  town  of  Fayetteville.  He,  instead  of  Eev.  Hugh  McAden, 
may  have  been  the  first  Presbyterian  preacher  to  settle  as  a  pastor  in 
the  State.  Mr.  Campbell  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  but  came  to 
America  in  early  life  and  preached  for  awhile  in  Pennsylvania  before 
coming  to  North  Carolina.  He  did  a  great  work  among  the  Scotch  on 
the  Cape  Pear.  He  organized  and  built  three  churches,  Bluff  (1758), 
Barbecue  and  Longstreet  (1765).  All  three  still  appear  on  the  role 
of  Fayetteville  Presbytery.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  Flora  McDon- 
ald, around  whose  life  there  is  gathered  such  a  beautiful  romance, 
worshiped  at  the  old  Barbecue  Church  for  a  number  of  years.  Mr. 
Campbell  thoroughly  instructed  his  people  in  the  Scriptures,  the  Shorter 
Catechism,  and  the  doctrines  of  the  church.  They  were  also  good 
sermon  tasters.  Eev.  John  McLeod,  who  came  from  Scotland  and  assisted 
Mr.  Campbell  for  several  years,  said  that  "he  would  rather  preach  to 
the  most  polished  audience  in  Edinburgh  than  to  the  little  critical  carls 
of  Barbecue ' '.  Mr.  Campbell  preached  two  sermons  every  Sunday,  one 
in  Gaelic  and  the  other  in  English.  He  continued  his  labors  among 
these  people  until  his  death  in  1781. 

In  1758  the  Eev.  Alexander  Craighead  came  to  North  Carolina  to 
become  pastor  of  Eocky  Eiver  Church  in  the  present  county  of  Cabarrus. 
He  was  the  first  Presbyterian  preacher  to  settle  between  the  Yadkin 
and  Catawba  Eivers,  and,  indeed,  was  the  only  Presbyterian  preacher  in 
all  that  territory  up  to  the  time  of  his  death  in  1766.  Alexander  Craig- 
head was  a  native  of  north  Ireland  and  a  genuine  Scotch-Irishman.  His 
ancestors  for  many  generations  had  been  Presbyterian  ministers.  He 
came  to  America  in  early  youth,  was  ordained  in  1735,  took  part  in  the 
great  Whitefield  revivals,  and  was  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  ' '  new  side ' ' 
when  the  church  split  in  1741.  In  1749  he  removed  to  Augusta  County, 
Virginia,  from  whence  he  was  driven  by  the  Indians  in  1755.  His 
daughter,  Mrs.  David  Caldwell,  was  accustomed  to  say  that  as  they 
went  out  of  one  door  the  Indians  came  in  at  the  other,  so  narrow  was 
their  escape.  A  little  later  Mr.  Craighead  came  to  North  Carolina.  For 
eight  years  he  threw  all  the  energies  of  body  and  soul  into  the  work  at 
Eocky  Eiver,  Sugar  Creek,  and  other  points  in  Mecklenburg  County.  He 
had  a  great  parish  and  did  a  great  work.  He  preached  the  unsearch- 
able riches  of  the  gospel  of  Christ  and  he  preached  the  doctrines  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty.  There  are  not  a  few  of  us  who  still  believe 
in  the  historicity  of  the  Mecklenburg  Declaration  of  Independence. 
Alexander  Craighead  had  more  to  do  with  the  setting  in  motion  of  the 
influences  that  resulted  in  that  Declaration  than  any  other  man.  Eternity 
alone  will  reveal  the  work  of  Alexander  Craighead. 

The  Eev.  Henry  Patillo  is  another  name  that  is  inseparably  con- 
nected with  the  early  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Caro- 
lina. He  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  came  to  Virginia  when  a  youth, 
studied  under  Eev.  Samuel  Davis,  was  ordained  in  1758,  and  after 
laboring  in  Virginia  awhile  came  to  North  Carolina  in  1765.     He  became 


Prof.   Walter  L.  Lmgle,  D.  I).  35 

pastor  of  Hawfield,  Eno  and  Little  River  in  Orange  County.  In  1755 
he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Provincial  Congress  of  North  Carolina 
and  was  an  honored  member  of  that  body.  In  1780  he  became  pastor  of 
Grassy  Creek  and  Nutbush  Churches  in  Granville  County  and  remained 
there  until  his  death  in  1801. 

Mr.  Patillo  was  deeply  interested  in  work  among  colored  people. 
He  was  also  noted  for  the  great  work  he  did  in  speaking  to  men  per- 
sonally about  their  salvation. 

He  must  have  been  very  human.  We  read  that  he  fell  deeply  in  love 
with  a  young  lady  and  married  her  while  he  was  a  student,  two  years 
before  he  had  finished  his  course,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  he  had 
nothing  to  live  on  and  in  spite  of  the  protestations  of  Rev.  Samuel 
Davies,  his  instructor.     That  all  sounds  very  human  and  very  modern. 

There  is  a  spicy  letter  from  his  pen  in  the  minutes  of  the  Synod  of 
the  Carolinas  in  1793,  protesting  against  the  importation  of  ministers 
from  Europe.  The  fact  that  he  was  a  native  of  Scotland  gives  all  the 
more  interest  to  this  letter.  Here  are  a  few  specimen  sentences :  ' '  We 
have  never  found  the  exotic  plants  of  Europe's  cold  regions  to  thrive 
among  us.  *  *  *  Their  divinity,  if  they  have  one,  is  not  Jesus 
Christ  and  the  power  of  His  grace  in  experimental  religion — their  politics 
are  monarchial  and  suit  not  the  liberal  spirit  of  American  republicanism. 
They  will  neither  pray,  preach  nor  live  like  pious  youth  bred  among 
ourselves.  I  bear  my  testimony  against  the  admission  of  such  dry  sticks 
among  lively  trees  in  our  American  vineyard.  *  *  The  churches  will  be 
much  better  as  vacancies  than  committed  to  stewards  who  would  feed 
them  with  poison  or  dry  husks  at  best. ' '  That,  too,  has  a  human  flavor 
about  it  and  makes  us  feel  that  these  ancient  worthies  were  men  of  like 
passion  as  ourselves. 

There  is  no  grander  nor  more  interesting  figure  in  the  early  history 
of  North  Carolina  than  the  Rev.  David  Caldwell,  who  for  fifty-six  years 
was  pastor  of  Alamance  and  Buffalo  Churches.  He  was  born  in  Lancaster 
County,  Pennsylvania,  worked  as  a  house  carpenter  until  he  was  twenty- 
five,  graduated  at  Princeton  at  the  age  of  thirty-six,  and  was  ordained 
to  preach  at  the  age  of  forty.  On  March  3,  1768,  he  became  pastor  of 
Alamance  and  Buffalo  Churches,  and  continued  to  serve  them  until 
his  death  on  August  25,  1824. 

Dr.  Caldwell  was  an  indefatigable  worker.  '  Soon  after  he  settled  as 
a  pastor  he  bought  a  farm  and,  in  addition  to  his  labors  as  pastor  and 
preacher,  became  a  splendid  farmer.  A  little  later  he  established  the 
best  classical  school  south  of  the  Potomac.  As  if  this  were  not  enough, 
he  studied  medicine  and  became  an  accomplished  physician.  All  these 
things  he  did  for  the  sake  of  the  Kingdom,  and  he  did  them  well,  and 
lived  to  be  over  ninety-nine  years  of  age.  If  any  one  is  laboring  under 
the  delusion  that  work  will  kill  a  man  he  ought  to  read  the  life  of 
Dr.  David  Caldwell. 

Dr.  Caldwell  married  Miss  Rachel  Craighead,  the  third  daughter  of 
Rev.  Alexander  Craighead.  In  later  years,  when  Dr.  Caldwell's  school 
had  trained  at  least  fifty  ministers,  there  was  a  saying  through  the 
country :  ' '  Dr.  Caldwell  makes  the  scholars,  but  Mrs.  Caldwell  makes 
the  ministers. ' ' 


36  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

The  Kev.  Samuel  Eiisebius  McCorkle,  pastor  of  Thyatira  in  Eowan 
County  from  1777  to  1811,  was  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  scholarly  men 
of  his  day.  He  was  born  in  Lancaster  County,  Pennsylvania,  August 
23,  1746,  but  his  parents  moved  to  North  Carolina  when  he  was  a  boy 
of  ten  and  settled  in  the  bounds  of  Thyatira.  He  graduated  at  Dr. 
David  Caldwell's  school  and  at  Princeton  and  was  licensed  to  preach  in 
1774.  In  1777  he  settled  as  pastor  at  Thyatira,  among  his  own  people, 
and  remained  there  until  his  death  in  1811.  In  connection  with  his 
work  as  pastor,  he,  too,  conducted  a  classical  school,  known  as  Zion's 
Parnassus,  from  which  forty-five  young  men  went  out  to  be  ministers. 
Dr.  McCorkle  belonged  to  the  ' '  old  side ' '  and  when  he  condemned  the 
excesses  of  the  great  revival  of  1802,  a  large  element  of  the  member- 
ship of  Thyatira,  including  all  the  elders,  withdrew  and  formed  Back 
Creek.  But  even  those  who  withdrew  continued  to  admire  and  love  Dr. 
McCorkle  as  long  as  he  lived. 

To  me  the  Eev.  James  Hall  is  the  most  winsome  of  all  the  pioneer 
preachers.  He  was  pastor  of  Fourth  Creek,  Bethany  and  Concord  in 
Iredell  for  many  years. 

Mr.  Hall  was  born  in  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania,  in  1744,  but  moved  with 
his  parents  to  North  Carolina  when  he  was  only  eight  years  old  and 
settled  within  the  bounds  of  the  churches  which  he  afterwards  served. 
He  graduated  at  Princeton  in  1774  and  was  licensed  to  preach  in  1776. 
In  1778  he  became  pastor  of  Bethany,  Concord  and  Fourth  Creek.  In 
1790  he  resigned  from  the  two  latter  churches,  but  remained  pastor  of 
Bethany  until  his  death  in  1826. 

Mr.  Hall  fell  deeply  in  love  with  a  young  lady  when  he  was  a  young- 
man,  but  he  did  not  follow  the  example  of  Henry  Patillo.  On  the 
other  hand,  as  he  brooded  over  the  matter,  he  feared  that  he  loved  the 
young  lady  more  than  he  did  his  Savior  and  resolved  in  his  heart  to 
remain  single  all  his  days.     He  kept  this  resolution. 

Mr.  Hall  was  a  most  ardent  missionary.  He  often  made  long  home 
missionary  journeys,  going  as  far  as  Georgia,  Alabama  and  Mississippi. 
When  he  was  appointed  by  the  General  Assembly  to  preach  the  opening 
sermon  at  the  organization  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  in  Alamance 
Church,  one  hundred  years  ago  today,  he  took  for  his  text :  "  Go  ye 
into  all  the  Avorld  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature. ' '  But  time 
fails  me  even  to  call  the  roll  of  all  these  venerable  fathers  ' '  of  whom 
the  world  was  not  worthy",  and  by  whose  labors  and  prayers  and  tears 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  was  established. 

III.     Our  Oldest  Churches 

Somebody  ought  to  write  the  history  of  every  old  church  in  the 
Synod,  and  then  somebody  ought  to  gather  these  histories  together  and 
place  a  copy  of  each  one  of  them  in  the  library  of  every  educational  insti- 
tution which  is  connected  with  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  North  Caro- 
lina, so  that  our  young  people  may  receive  the  inspiration  that  comes 
from  such  sacred  history  and  so  that  the  future  historians  may  have 
adequate  material  for  writing  the  real  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  our  State. 

I  have  found  it  very  interesting  to  dig  into  the  history  of  these 
old  churches,  so  far  as  the  material  at  hand  would  allow.     Let  me  now 


Prof.  Walter  L.  Lingle,  D.  D.  37 

give  a  list  of  some  of  the  more  important  of  these  churches  in  the  order 
of  their  probable  age. 

Old  Goshen  Church  in  Duplin  was  probably  the  first  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  State.  It  was  organized  about  1750  and  issued  a  call  to 
Eev.  Hugh  McAden  in  1756. 

Grassy  Creek  in  Granville  County,  was  organized  in  1753.  Thyatira 
in  Eowan  County,  holds  a  deed  for  her  grounds,  dated  January  1, 
1753,  and  Eev.  Hugh  McAden  tells  us  in  his  diary  that  he  received  a 
call  from  Thyatira  (then  known  as  Cathey's  Meeting  House)  on  Dec.  28, 
1755.  Griers  (formerly  known  as  Upper  Hico)  and  Eed  House  (formerly 
known  as  Middle  Hico)  in  Caswell  County,  were  organized  in  1753. 
Barbecue,  Bluff  and  Longstreet  Churches,  in  Cumberland  County,  are 
very  old  and  must  be  dated  about  1755.  Eocky  Eiver  in  Cabarrus  County, 
sent  a  request  to  the  Synod  of  New  York  for  a  pastor  in  1755  and  in 
December,  1755,  joined  with  Thyatira  in  a  call  to  Eev.  Hugh  McAden. 
Sugar  Creek  was  then  included  in  the  bounds  of  Eocky  Eiver.  Haw- 
field  and  Eno  Churches  in  Orange  County,  were  organized  in  1755, 
Buffalo  in  Guilford  was  organized  in  1756  and  Alamance  in  1764. 

In  1764  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  directed  Eev.  Elihu 
Spencer  and  Eev.  Alexander  McWhorter  to  go  to  North  Carolina  and  "to 
form  societies  (churches),  help  them  in  adjusting  their  bounds;  to  ordain 
elders,  administer  the  sacraments,  etc.  These  two  brethren  came  to 
North  Carolina  in  1765  and,  acting  under  their  instructions  from  the 
Synod,  made  it  a  banner  year  in  the  history  of  the  organization  of 
churches  in  our  State.  It  was  in  1765  that  Sugar  Creek,  Steele  Creek, 
New  Providence  and  Hopewell  in  Mecklenburg ;  Center,  Fourth  Creek, 
Bethany  and  Concord  in  Iredell ;  Poplar  Tent  in  Cabarrus,  and  many 
other  churches  in  the  State,  were  set  off  from  older  congregations  and 
organized  into  separate  churches.  But  again  time  fails  even  to  mention  all 
these  old  churches,  each  one  of  whom  is  worthy  of  a  volume  all  to  itself. 

IV.     Presbyteries,   Synods,   and   General   Assembly 

There  was  no  Presbytery  in  Virginia  or  North  Carolina  prior  to  1755. 
On  Dec.  3,  1755,  Hanover  Presbytery  was  formed  and  embraced  prac- 
tically all  the  territory  south  of  the  Potomac.  It  covered  the  whole  of 
North  Carolina  and  Virginia.  The  pioneer  preachers  of  whom  we  have 
been  speaking  belonged  to  this  Presbytery.  On  October  2,  1765,  Hanover 
Presbytery  met  in  Lower  Hico  Church  in  Person  County.  This  was  the 
first  time  a  Presbytery  ever  met  in  the  State  of  North  Carolina.  We  find 
from  the  records  that  it  held  three  other  meetings  in  this  State — one  at 
Eed  House  Church  on  June  4,  1766,  another  at  Buffalo  Church  on  March 
2,  1768,  and  the  last  at  Buffalo  Church  on  March  7,  1770.  That  was  the 
last  meeting  of  Hanover  Presbytery  in  North  Carolina.  It  is  still 
meeting  in  Virginia. 

September  4th,  1770,  was  a  red  letter  day  in  the  history  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  the  State.  On  that  day  Orange  Presbytery  was 
organized  at  Hawfield  Church  in  Orange  County,  It  embraced  the  whole 
of  the  State  and  more,  and  was  the  only  Presbytery  in  North  Carolina 


38  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

for  the  next  twenty-five  years.  It  included  seven  ministers  and  forty  or 
fifty  churches  with  a  membership  of  about  2,000,  and  many  more  adher- 
ents. The  seven  ministers  were  Rev.  Messrs.  Hugh  McAden,  Henry 
Patillo,  James  Creswell,  David  Caldwell,  Joseph  Alexander,  Hezekiah 
Balch  and  Hezekiah  James  Baleh.  The  Presbytery  grew  rapidly  in 
spite  of  the  terrible  war  through  which  the  country  was  so  soon  to  pass. 
In  1774  it  had  twelve  ordained  ministers.  In  1780  there  were  eighteen 
ministers  and  five  licentiates. 

One  of  the  deplorable  losses  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  State 
was  the  burning  of  all  the  records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Orange  when  the 
residence  of  the  stated  clerk,  Eev.  John  Witherspoon,  near  Hillsboro,  was 
burned  on  New  Year's  Day,  1827.  These  records  contained  the  most 
precious  history  of  our  church  in  this  State. 

Steps  were  taken  in  1788  by  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadel- 
phia to  organize  a  General  Assembly.  With  this  in  view,  the  Synod  of 
Virginia  was  set  off,  embracing  the  whole  of  Virginia  and  a  part  of 
Kentucky.  The  Synod  of  Virginia  held  its  first  meeting  on  October 
22,  1788.  At  the  same  time  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  was  set  off, 
including  the  whole  of  North  Carolina  and  South  Carolina  and  a  part 
of  Georgia.  That  was  another  red  letter  day  in  the  history  of  our  church 
in  this  State.  The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  was  composed  of  three  Presby- 
teries, Orange,  South  Carolina  and  Abingdon.  Orange  still  embraced 
practically  all  of  the  Presbyterian  Churches  in  North  Carolina. 

The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  held  its  first  meeting  in  Center  Church  in 
Iredell  County  on  November  5,  1788.  There  were  present  ten  ministers 
and  eight  elders.  Six  of  these  ministers  and  six  of  the  elders  were  from 
Orange  Presbytery.  There  were  at  that  time  twenty-eight  ministers 
living  within  the  bounds  of  the   Synod. 

Dr.  David  Caldwell  preached  the  opening  sermon  and  was  elected 
moderator.  The  organization  gave  a  fresh  impetus  to  the  work  of  our 
church  in  the  State,  and  it  went  forward  more  rapidly.  The  Synod  in 
1795  ordered  the  division  of  Orange  into  two  Presbyteries.  The  new 
Presbytery  was  to  embrace  all  of  the  State  lying  west  of  the  Yadkin 
River  and  was  to  be  known  as  the  Presbytery  of  Concord.  At  the  time 
of  this  division  there  were  eleven  ministers  in  Orange  Presbytery  and 
twelve  in  Concord.     In  1799  Orange  had  14  ministers  and  Concord  had  15. 

A  synopsis  of  the  minutes  of  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  is  preserved 
in  Foote  's  Sketches  and  makes  very  interesting  reading.  It  held  twenty- 
five  annual  sessions  in  all.  A  list  of  its  moderators  makes  a  suggestive 
study.  The  Rew  James  Hall,  of  Iredell,  was  moderator  twice,  in  1794, 
and  again  in  1812  at  the  last  meeting  of  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas. 
At  the  Synod  of  1812  two  significant  resolutions  were  passed,  one  direct- 
ing that  Fayetteville  Presbytery  be  set  off  from  Orange,  and  the  other 
requesting  the  General  Assembly  to  divide  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  and 
to  organize  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  to  be  composed  of  the  Pres- 
byteries of  Orange,  Concord  and  Fayetteville.  After  this  the  Synod  of 
the  Carolinas  adjourned  sine  die. 


Prof.    Walter  L.   Liiujlr,   D.  D.  39 

V.     Some  Outstanding  Characteristics  op  this  Early  Church 

Before  proceeding  further,  let  me  mention  some  of  the  points  about 
this  early  Presbyterian  church  in  North  Carolina  which  have  made  a  deep 
impression  on  my  mind  as  I  have  studied  its  history. 

1.  It  was  a  missionary  church.  In  reality  all  of  these  early  preachers 
were  home  missionaries.  Rev.  Hugh  McAden  and  Rev.  James  Hall 
were  princes  among  missionaries.  You  will  find  this  intense  missionary 
spirit  cropping  out  in  the  minutes  of  every  meeting  of  the  Synod  of 
the  Carolinas.  Let  me  give  a  few  sample  quotations  from  the  minutes. 
From  the  minutes  of  the  Synod  which  met  at  Thyatira  in  1791  we 
have  this  praagraph:  "At  this  meeting  the  Synod  took  up  the  subject 
of  domestic  missions  and  resolved  to  send  out  four  missionaries  to  act 
in  the  destitute  regions  each  side  of  the  Alleghanies;  the  direction  of 
the  missionaries  to  be  in  the  commission  of  the  Synod  during  recess  of 
Synod ;  their  support  fixed  at  two  hundred  dollars  annually.  It  was  made 
the  duty  of  the  missionaries  to  ascertain  who  of  the  families  they  visited 
wished  to  receive  the  gospel  from  the  Presbyterians,  and  make  report; 
they  were  also  to  make  collections  where  they  preached. ' '  One  rule 
laid  down  by  the  Synod's  commission  for  the  direction  of  these  mission- 
aries is  very  interesting :  ' '  You  are  not  to  tarry  longer  than  three 
weeks  at  the  same  time,  in  the  bounds  of  twenty  miles,  except  peculiar 
circumstances  may  appear  to  make  it  necessary. ' '  The  reports  of  the 
missionaries  to  the  Synod  in  1794  were  spread  on  the  minutes  of  the 
Synod  and  cover  sixteen  folio  pages.  They  show  great  diligence  on 
the  part  of  the  missionaries  and  an  alarming  want  of  ministers.  In 
1800  a  pastoral  letter  on  the  subject  of  missions  was  prepared  by  the 
Synod  and  sent  to  the  Presbyteries  to  be  laid  before  the  congregations. 
In  1803  the  Synod's  commission  reported  that  they  had  eight  missionaries 
laboring  within  the  bounds  of  the  Synod,  one  of  whom  was  working 
among  the  Catawba  Indians.  We  might  make  many  other  similar 
quotations,  but  these  are  enough  to  show  the  missionary  spirit  of  these 
early  fathers.  I  rejoice  that  this  spirit  still  lives  in  this  great  Synod. 
Perhaps  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  is 
today  the  most  intensely  missionary  of  all  the  Synods. 

2.  This  early  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  was  an  edu- 
cational church.  Hard  by  nearly  every  Presbyterian  Church  there  was 
a  school  house  and  the  principal  teacher  in  that  school  was  the  Pres- 
byterian preacher.  We  recall  some  of  the  more  notable  of  these 
schools.  Dr.  David  Caldwell  perhaps  had  the  greatest  of  all  of  them  right 
here  in  Guilford.  Dr.  Samuel  E.  McCorkle  had  a  great  school  in 
Rowan.  Dr.  Wilson,  of  Rocky  River,  had  a  noted  school  and  so  did  Dr. 
Robinson,  of  Poplar  Tent.  Dr.  James  Hall,  with  all  his  missionary 
labors,  maintained  a  good  school  at  Bethany  in  Iredell.  Dr.  Caldwell,  of 
Sugar  Creek,  also  had  a  flourishing  school.  Rev.  William  Bingham,  of 
Chatham,  founded  a  school  which  has  continued  to  grow  in  power  unto 
this  day.  There  were  also  schools  in  Fayetteville,  at  Providence,  in 
Burke,  and  in  Duplin  County. 

In  1802  the  Synod  passed  this  resolution:  "This  Synod  enjoins  it 
on  each  Presbytery  of  which  it  is  composed  to  establish  within  its  respec- 


40  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

tive  bounds,  one  or  more  grammar  schools,  except  where  such  schools 
are  already  established;  and  that  each  member  of  the  several  Presby- 
teries make  it  their  business  to  select  and  encourage  youths  of  promising 
piety  and  talents,  and  such  as  may  be  expected  to  turn  their  attention 
to  the  ministry  of  the  gospel. ' ' 

The  Bible,  the  catechisms,  and  the  great  principles  of  our  religion 
were  taught  in  all  these  schools.  Back  in  those  days  inability  to  repeat 
the  Westminster  Shorter  Catechism  was  considered  a  mark  of  vulgarity. 

Thus  did  our  fathers  lay  foimdations.  We  Presbyterians  still  believe 
in  education  and  we  have  some  splendid  institutions  and  we  have  not  a 
few  pastors  who  have  a  school  house  by  the  church,  but  I  seriously  doubt 
whether  we  are  laying  half  the  stress  upon  Christian  education  that  we 
should  do. 

3.  These  early  fathers  were  jealous  guardians  of  the  faith.  In 
reading  these  old  records  one  is  amazed  at  the  number  of  cases  of 
ministerial  discipline.  The  charges  brought  against  these  ministers  were 
seldom  of  a  moral  nature,  but  in  nearly  every  case  they  were  of  a  doc- 
trinal character.  Some  of  these  charges  seem  interesting  enough  in 
these  latter  days.  One  minister  was  charged  with  holding  ' '  That  the 
justification  of  a  sinner  through  the  atonement  of  Christ  is  an  act  of 
justice  and  that  there  is  no  difference  between  saving  faith  and  his- 
torical faith,  ouly  in  degree  of  evidence. ' '  Another  minister  had  the 
following  charges  lodged  against  him:  "  (1)  He  affirms  *  *  that  the 
passive  obedience  of  Christ  is  all  that  the  law  of  God  can,  or  does, 
require  in  order  to  justification  of  the  believer,  and  that  his  active 
obedience  is  not  imputed.  (2)  He  also  affirms  and  teaches  that  saving 
faith  precedes  regeneration,  and  has  nothing  holy  in  its  nature,  as  to  its 
first  act.  (3)  That  the  Divine  Being  is  bound  by  His  own  law,  or  in 
other  words,  by  the  moral  law. ' ' 

Still  another  minister  was  accused,  among  other  things,  of  ' '  charging 
the  Church  of  Scotland  and  some  of  our  Calvinistic  divines  of  holding 
the  doctrine  that  there  were  infants  in  hell  not  a  span  long. ' '  So  you 
see  the  controversy  over  the  infant  clause  is  not  new.  I  am  glad  that 
they  brought  that  particular  brother  before  the  Presbytery  and  Synod. 

The  Synod  of  1801  enjoined  the  Presbytery  of  Abingdon  to  have  "a 
more  strict  regard  to  our  standards  of  doctrine  and  discipline,  especially 
in  introducing  young  men  to  the  ministry  of  the  gospel." 

Not  only  did  these  fathers  guard  the  faith  in  this  more  or  less  nega- 
tive way,  but  they  did  it  in  a  very  positive  way  by  teaching  it  with  great 
emphasis  and  earnestness  to  their  people.  They  laid  great  stress  upon 
the  study  of  the  Bible,  the  Confession  of  Faith  and  the  Catechisms.  Two 
illustrations  will  show  this.  In  1809  Bev.  James  Hall  prefaced  his  report 
to  Synod  concerning  a  great  missionary  journey  of  1545  miles  in  the 
following  way,  using  the  third  person: 

' '  Previously  to  his  departure  from  home,  he  had  extracted  four 
hundred  and  twenty  questions  from  our  Confession  of  Faith,  which 
embraced  the  most  important  doctrines  contained  in  that  system,  and  dis- 
seminated them  through  eight  of  our  vacancies  for  the  perusal  of  the 
people,  until  he  should  return  to  finish  his  mission,  at  which  time  they 
were  to  be  called  up  for  examination. ' ' 


Prof.   Walter  L.  Lingle,  D.  D.  41 

The  other  illustration  I  take  from  a  note  appended  to  a  printed  ser- 
mon preached  in  1792  by  Kev.  Samuel  E.  McCorkle,  pastor  of  Thyatira. 
He  tells  of  his  plan  for  instructing  his  people  in  the  Scriptures  and  in 
the  doctrines  of  the  Church.  ' '  The  Congregation  I  have  divided  into  a 
number  of  divisions  of  fifteen  or  sixteen  families  each,  assigned  to  each 
division  a  set  of  written  questions,  from  one  part  of  one  or  two  books, 
as  they  may  be  long  or  short,  in  each  Testament;  catechising  in  the 
morning  from  the  Old,  and  in  the  afternoon  from  the  New  Testament,  and 
closing  by  calling  on  the  youth  to  repeat  the  Shorter  Catechism.  *  *  * 
I  have  proceeded  from  Genesis  to  Job,  and  through  part  of  the  four 
evangelists  and  I  design,  if  God  permit,  to  proceed  on  to  the  end  asking 
questions  that  lead  to  reading  and  reflection. ' ' 

Many  similar  illustrations  might  be  cited.  Do  you  wonder  that  there 
were  doctrinal  giants  in  those  days? 

4.  The  attitude  of  this  early  church  towards  slaves  and  slavery  is 
full  of  interest  and  instruction. 

In  1796  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  passed  an  order  "enjoining  upon 
heads  of  families  the  religious  instruction  of  their  slaves,  and  the  teach- 
ing the  children  of  slaves  to  read  the  Bible. ' ' 

From  the  minutes  of  that  same  meeting  of  Synod  we  have  this  most 
illuminating  paragraph :  "A  memorial  was  brought  forward  and  laid 
before  the  Synod  by  the  Eev.  James  Gilleland,  stating  his  conscientious 
difficulties  in  receiving  the  advice  of  the  Presbytery  of  South  Carolina, 
which  has  enjoined  upon  him  to  be  silent  in  the  pulpit  on  the  subject 
of  the  emancipation  of  the  Africans,  which  injunction  Mr.  Gilleland 
declares  to  be  in  his  apprehension  contrary  to  the  counsel  of  God. 
Whereupon  Synod,  after  deliberation  upon  the  matter,  do  concur  with 
the  Presbytery  in  advising  Mr.  Gilleland  to  content  himself  with  using 
his  utmost  endeavors  in  private  to  open  the  way  for  emancipation,  so  as 
to  secure  our  happiness  as  a  people,  preserve  the  peace  of  the  church,  and 
render  them  capable  of  enjoying  the  blessings  of  liberty. ' ' 

In  1800  an  overture  was  presented  to  the  Synod  urging  the  Synod  to 
join  in  a  movement  to  petition  the  legislature  to  undertake  the  emancipa- 
tion of  slavery  by  degrees,  on  the  principle  that  all  children  of  slaves  born 
after  a  fixed  time  should  be  free.  The  Synod  made  this  very  interesting 
answer:  "Though  it  is  our  ardent  wish  that  the  object  contemplated  in 
the  overture  should  be  obtained;  yet,  as  it  appears  to  us  that  matters  are 
not  yet  matured  for  carrying  it  forward,  especially  in  the  southern  part  of 
our  states,  your  committee  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  overture  should  now 
be  laid  aside;  and  that  it  be  enjoined  upon  every  member  of  the  Synod 
to  use  his  influence  to  carry  into  effect  the  directions  and  recommendations 
of  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  and  those  additionally  made 
by  the  General  Assembly  for  the  instruction  of  those  who  are  in  a  state 
of  slavery,  to  prepare  them  the  better  for  a  state  of  freedom,  when  such 
shall  be  contemplated  by  the  legislatures  of  our  Southern  States. ' ' 

5.  These  pioneer  preachers  preached  the  gospel,  but  they  did  not 
preach  it  in  a  timeless,  ageless  sort  of  way.  They  applied  it  to  the 
times  in  which  they  lived  and  to  the  people  who  sat  before  them.  A  few 
quotations  will  make  plain  what  I  mean.  They  are  taken  from  the  Life 
of  Dr.  David  Caldwell,  by  Dr.  Caruthers :     ' '  There  was  a  combination 


42  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

of  the  doctrinal  and  practical  in  their  preaching,  which  is  not  generally 
found  to  prevail  at  present.  Much  of  their  preaching  was  directed 
against  the  predominant  vices  of  the  times,  such  as  intemperance,  licen- 
tiousness, theft,  robbery,  and  so  forth,  which  were  then  rife  everywhere, 
and  required  the  combined  efforts  of  all  the  wise  and  good  for  their  sup- 
pression. There  is  in  my  possession  a  manuscript  sermon  preached  about 
the  close  of  the  (Bevolutionary)  War  by  one  of  the  ablest  men  in  the 
country,   entitled,   ' '  The   Crime   and  Curse   of  Plundering. ' ' 

Another  quotation  will  give  us  a  glimpse  at  the  kind  of  preaching 
Dr.  David  Caldwell  did:  "Dr.  Caldwell  often  preached  on  the  subject  of 
the  existing  difficulties  between  England  and  the  American  colonies.  *  * 
Hardly  a  Sabbath  passed  in  which  he  did  not  allude  to  the  subject  in 
some  way  or  other;  and  while  he  denounced  in  strongest  terms  the  cor- 
ruptions and  oppressions  of  the  existing  government,  he  exhorted  his 
hearers,  with  equal  energy  and  zeal,  to  value  their  liberties  above  every- 
thing else,  and  stand  up  manfully  in  their  defense.  *  *  Most  of  the 
Presbyterian  ministers  in  North  Carolina  and  throughout  the  union  pur- 
sued a  similar  course,  and  with  very  gratifying  success;  for  wherever 
a  minister  of  that  denomination  was  settled,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able 
to   ascertain,  the  people   around  him  were   Whigs,   almost   to   a   man. ' ' 

There  is  still  extant  a  sermon  by  Dr.  Caldwell  on  the  text,  ' '  But  the 
slothful  shall  be  under  tribute, ' '  which  is  a  fine  illustration  of  his 
style  of  preaching  in  those  stormy  days.  It  sounds  like  a  section  from 
Amos  or  one  of  the  other  great  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament. 

There  are  many  other  interesting  and  striking  points  about  the  early 
Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina,  but  these  must  suffice. 

I  have  now  spent  my  time  in  giving  you  glimpses  of  the  history  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  up  to  the  formation  of  the 
Synod  in  1813.  I  have  dwelt  at  length  upon  this  early  period,  because 
it  is  the  most  interesting  period,  because  it  is  not  possible  to  cover  the 
whole  subject  assigned  me  in  one  address,  but  most  especially  because 
it  is  the  formative  period  in  which  the  character  of  the  church  was  being 
formed  and  in  which  her  future  policies  were  being  shaped.  Our  history 
from  1813  onward  was  practically  normal  and  was  but  the  outworking 
of  the  great  foundation  principles  which  were  laid  back  in  the  early 
period  of  which  I  have  been  speaking. 

VI.     A  Synopsis  of  the  History  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina 
from  1813  to  1863 

I  can  now  give  but  the  very  barest  synopsis  of  our  history  from  1813 
to  1863.  The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  held  its  twenty-fifth  and  last  session 
at  New  Providence  Church  on  October  5th,  1812.  The  Synod  of  North 
Carolina  was  organized  here  in  old  Alamance  Church  on  October  7th, 
1813.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  this  was  to  the  very  day  the  thirty- 
third  anniversary  of  the  battle  of  King's  Mountain.  It  is  possible  that 
some  of  the  veterans  of  that  battle  were  present  at  this  first  meeting 
of  the  Synod. 

There  were  in  North  Carolina  in  1813  thirty-four  Presbyterian  min- 
isters and  eighty-nine  churches.  This  would  have  made  a  Synod  of 
123  members  if  all  could  have  been  present.     But  there  were  no  railroads 


Prof.   Walter  L.  Liiu/lc,  D.  D.  43 

and  few  wagon  roads  in  those  days.  As  a  result  the  first  Synod  was 
composed  of  only  12  ministers  and  3  elders.  But  they  did  not  despise 
the  day  of  small  things  and  there  laid  the  foundation  for  this  great 
Synod  which  you  see  today. 

The  Rev.  James  Hall,  then  in  his  seventieth  year,  preached  the  open- 
ing sermon.  It  was  a  great  missionary  sermon.  His  text  was:  "Go 
ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature. ' '  That 
sermon  was  the  expression  of  the  deep  missionary  spirit  which  pervaded 
the  early  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  and  the  foretoken  of 
that  larger  missionary  spirit  which  has  laid  hold  upon  the  church  in  these 
latter  days. 

During  the  first  two  decades  after  its  organization  the  growth  of  the 
Synod  was  rather  slow  and  discouraging.  We  can  see  this  from  the 
statistics  which  are  given  for  the  Synod  in  the  minutes  of  the  General 
Assembly.  We  do  well,  however,  to  remember  that  these  statistics  are 
only  approximate.  It  is  difficult  to  get  accurate  reports  from  churches 
in  these  days  when  we  have  every  facility  for  doing  so;  it  was  much 
more  difficult  in  those  early  days  with  their  primitive  methods.  For 
example,  in  1812  there  were  789  Presbyterian  Churches  in  the  United 
States,  and  only  215  reported  the  total  number  of  their  communicants  to 
the  General  Assembly. 

According  to  the  minutes  of  the  General  Assembly,  there  were  in  1813 
in  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  34  ministers,  89  churches  and  4000 
communicants.  In  1820  there  were  38  ministers,  112  churches  and  5841 
communicants.  In  1830  there  were  57  ministers,  126  churches  and  5907 
communicants.  Then  came  brighter  days.  Precious  seasons  of  revival 
came  to  many  of  the  churches  in  1832  and  1833.  We  find  that  1029 
members  were  added  to  the  churches  on  profession  in  1832  and  1818 
members  in  1833.  If  we  will  remember  how  small  the  church  was,  how 
small  the  population  was  and  what  slow  modes  of  travel  were  in  vogue 
in  those  days,  we  can  begin  to  see  what  these  large  numbers  mean.  If, 
in  addition  to  this,  we  will  remember  that  in  1913  our  large  Synod,  with 
all  her  organization  and  resources,  reported  only  2608  additions  on 
profession,  we  can  understand  their  meaning  more  fully  still. 

The  minutes  of  the  General  Assembly  for  1833  report  65  ministers, 
129  churches,  and  9875  members  in  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina.  Two 
more  lean  decades  followed.  In  1840  there  were  78  ministers,  136 
churches  and  8481  members.  In  1850  there  were  88  ministers,  146 
churches  and  9910  members.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  784  of  these 
members  were  negro  slaves.  Now  follows  a  decade  of  rapid  growth.  In 
1860  there  were  97  ministers,  180  churches  and  15590  members.  Of 
these  members  1269  were  colored.  For  many  years  prior  to  1860  Rocky 
River  Church  in  Cabarrus  County  was  the  largest  church  in  the  Synod. 
In  1860  it  had  a  membership  of  616.     Of  these  175  were  colored. 

These  figures  show  us  that  there  were  lean  years  and  fat  years  during 
the  period  from  1813  to  1863.  There  were  lights  and  shadows,  encourage- 
ments and  discouragements,  just  as  there  are  in  the  work  today. 

During  this  period  there  were  some  outstanding  leaders,  but  as  they 
will  no  doubt  be  mentioned  by  the  speaker  who  is  to  follow  me,  I  will 
resist  the  temptation  to  tell  of  them  and  their  work. 


44  The  Beginnings  and  Development  of  Presbyterianism 

Two  far-reaching  steps  were  taken  along  educational  lines  by  the 
North  Carolina  Presbyterians  during  this  period.  In  1827  the  Synod 
of  North  Carolina  united  with  the  Synoa  of  Virginia  in  the  ownership, 
control  and  support  of  Union  Theological  Seminary,  which  was  then 
located  at  Hampden-Sidney,  Virginia,  and  only  fourteen  years  old.  This 
is  one  of  the  most  important  actions  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  ever 
took.     Eternity  alone  will  reveal  its  full  significance. 

In  1837  the  Presbytery  of  Concord,  in  North  Carolina,  and  the 
Presbytery  of  Bethel,  in  South  Carolina,  founded  Davidson  College. 
Later  all  the  Presbyteries  in  North  Carolina  accepted  an  invitation  to 
take  part  in  the  ownership  and  control  of  this  splendid  institution. 
Davidson  has  now  passed  her  seventy-fifth  anniversary.  During  all  these 
years  she  has  been  a  powerful  factor  in  establishing  and  developing  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  not  only  in  North  Carolina,  but  in  all  the  world. 

But  time  fails.  We  must  close  this  meager  study  of  a  great  subject. 
I  am  perfectly  aware  of  the  fact  that  I  have  only  touched  the  outer 
edges  of  my  subject.  It  would  take  several  volumes  to  tell  the  whole 
story.  Yet  enough  has  been  said  to  show  us  that  we  have  a  noble  birth- 
right.    Shall  we  despise  it  as  Esau  did? 

As  we  stand  here  today  on  this  holy  ground,  with  this  story  of  a 
glorious  past  burning  in  our  hearts,  there  is  a  distinct  call  to  you  and 
me  to.  reconsecrate  ourselves  to  this  great  work  to  which  our  father's 
gave  their  lives.  Dr.  W.  M.  Paxton  expresses  this  thought  for  me 
better  than  I  can  express  it  for  myself.  Let  me  close  with  a  ringing 
exhortation  from  him:  "We  cannot  dedicate,  we  cannot  consecrate,  we 
cannot  hallow  this  ground.  The  brave  men  who  have  struggled  here  have 
consecrated  it  far  above  our  power  to  add  or  detract.  It  is  for  us  the 
living  rather  to  be  dedicated  here  to  their  unfinished  work ".  "In  the 
memory  of  their  mighty  acts  we  should  train  our  children.  The  historian 
Sallust  tells  us  that  the  Eoman  mothers  trained  their  children  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  busts  and  statues  of  their  ancestors.  In  like  manner  we 
should  train  our  children  and  our  rising  ministry,  as  it  were,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  their  forefathers,  in  all  the  memories  of  our  past  history,  and 
urge  them,  as  the  Eoman  mothers  did,  never  to  be  satisfied  whilst  the 
virtues  and  victories  of  the  past  were  more  numerous  or  more  glorious 
than  those  of  the  present. '  '* 


Quoted  from  The  Creed  of  Presbyterians,  by  Rev.  Egbert  TV.   Smith,  D.  D. 


45 


THE  PERSONNEL  OP  THE  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH 
IN  NORTH  CAROLINA  FROM  1813  TO  1838 


D.  I.  CRAIG,  D.  D. 
Reidsville,  N.  C. 


One  hundred  years  ago  today  there  were  assembled  at  this  place 
twelve  ministers  and  three  ruling  elders  who  constituted  the  membership 
present  of  the  first  meeting  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina.  The  names 
of  these  twelve  ministers  were:  David  Caldwell,  E.  H.  Chapman,  Wm. 
Paisley,  Samuel  Paisley,  J.  W.  Thompson,  Robert  Tate,  Murdock 
McMillan,  John  Mclntyre,  James  Hall,  S.  C.  Caldwell,  J.  M.  Wilson,  and 
John  Eobinson.  The  names  of  the  elders  were  Hugh  Forbes,  John 
McDonald  and  Wm.  Carrigan.  The  names  of  the  absent  ministers  were 
Wm.  Pheeters,  Joseph  Caldwell,  J.  H.  Bowman,  E.  B.  Currie,  W.  B. 
Meroney,  Samuel  Stanford,  W.  L.  Turner,  Malcolm  McNair,  Allen 
McDougald,  Wm.  Peacock,  James  McEee,  Humphrey  Hunter,  James 
Wallis,  E.  B.  Walker,  J.  B.  Davis,  J.  D.  Kilpatrick,  John  Carrigan  and 
John  Williamson. 

Thus  it  may  be  seen  that  the  ministerial  personnel  of  the  Synod  one 
hundred  years  ago  numbered  exactly  30,  while  today  the  roll  shows  the 
names  of   about   240. 

Within  twenty-five  years  after  this  first  meeting,  just  two-thirds 
of  the  original  thirty  ministers  were  gone.  All  of  these  men  had  lived 
and  labored  during  a  part  or  the  whole  of  the  period  of  the  existence 
of  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas.  David  Caldwell,  Samuel  McCorkle, 
James  Hall  and  James  McEee  were  present  at  the  organization  of  the 
Synod  of  the  Carolinas  in  1788.  But  within  this  period  of  twenty-five 
years  after  the  first  meeting,  we  find  the  roll  of  Synod  replenished  with 
such  names  as  E.  W.  Caruthers,  N.  H.  Harding,  A.  D.  Montgomery, 
Elisha  Mitchell,  Alexander  Wilson,  D.  A.  Penick,  E.  H.  Morrison,  Colin 
Mclver,  Hector  McLean,  Hector  McJMeill,  Evander  McNair,  John  With- 
erspoon,  S.  L.  Graham,  Stephen  Frontis,  Jesse  Eankin,  Samuel  William- 
son, J.  W.  Douglas,  Drury  Lacy,  James  Phillips,  John  A.  Gretter,  Wm. 
N.  Mebane  and  many  others,  making  the  roll  of  Synod  number  77  in 
1839. 

The  Eev.  Dr.  H.  G.  Hill  and  I  have  been  requested  to  speak  of  the 
Personnel  of  the  Church  up  to  1863,  a  period  of  fifty  years  after  the 
organization  of  the  Synod.  We  have  mutually  agreed  to  divide  this 
period  between  us,  he  taking  the  latter  and  I  the  first  part  of  it. 

So  then,  I  am  to  speak  of  those  who  composed  the  Synod  from  1813 
to  1838. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  speak  of  Craighead,  McAden,  Campbell, 
Patillo,  Alexander  and  others  who  wielded  such  a  wonderful   influence 


46       The  Personnel  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina 

in  their  day.  But  I  have  mentioned  the  names  of  quite  a  number  of 
men  who  were  connected  directly  with  this  Synod.  Who  were  they? 
And  what  did  they  do  in  their  day? 

I  wish  to  say  without  hesitation  that  all  of  them  were  a  grand  and 
noble  set  of  men,  worthy  of  all  honor  and  praise,  and  should  be  in 
everlasting  remembrance. 

These  men  were  the  builders  and  moulders  of  thought  and  action 
and  character  for  us  today,  based  largely  upon  the  foundations  laid 
in  the  days  of  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas.  They  did  their  work  well, 
perhaps  as  well  as  any  set  of  men  on  earth  could  have  done  it,  considering 
the  environments  and  conditions  of  the  times  in  which  they  lived.  They 
met  the  needs  and  conditions  of  their  time  bravely  and  nobly,  and  have 
left  to  us  an  immortal  heritage  of  noble  lives  and  noble  deeds. 

After  the  ascension  of  our  Lord  He  gave  to  His  church  ' '  some  evan- 
gelists, and  some  pastors  and  teachers ' '. 

The  men  who  met  here  one  hundred  years  ago  were  not  evangelists 
in  the  modern  sense  of  that  term.  Many  of  them  had  a  deep  and 
abiding  evangelistic  spirit,  and  did  much  misssionary  work  by  special 
appointment  of  the  Synod.  All  work  of  this  character  was  prosecuted 
after  the  manner  of  the  early  missionaries,  like  Eobinson  in  Virginia, 
and  McAden  and  others  in  North  Carolina.  In  the  early  years  of  this 
Synod  that  remarkable  man,  Dr.  James  Hall,  who  as  a  soldier,  patriot, 
scholar,  teacher  and  prince  among  preachers,  was  preeminently  a  mis- 
sionary evangelist.  I  might  mention  also  Bowman,  Stanford,  Tate, 
McPheeters,  Eobinson,  Douglas  and  others  who  did  this  kind  of  work  in 
their  day  and  in  the  early  years  of  this  Synod.  But  these  men  had 
pastorates,  and  their  work  as  evangelists  was  not  followed  up  by  any 
organized  system  in  the  Synod,  and  not  much  in  the  Presbyteries.  About 
the  year  1800  a  tide  of  infidelity  and  intemperance  swept  over  this 
country.  The  writings  of  Paine,  Hume  and  Voltaire  were  extensively 
read  by  the  people,  and  religious  literature  and  newspapers  were  not 
abundant  to  inform  the  people  and  to  counteract  the  so-called  "Age 
of  Beason ' '.  Consequently  the  ministers  had  their  hands  full  to  instruct 
and  indoctrinate  their  charges  in  the  principles  of  truth  and  righteous- 
ness. There  seemed  to  be  no  place  for  evangelists,  and  besides,  the 
Assembly  had  charge  of  all  missions  with  the  Presbyteries  as  auxil- 
iaries, and  few  men  were  ordained  as  evangelists.  In  1830  Concord  Pres- 
bytery ordained  Thomas  Epsey,  and  in  1839  Orange  Presbytery  ordained 
W.  N.  Mebane  as  evangelists,  and  they  did  a  grand  work,  but  the 
Synod  had  none.  In  1838  Dr.  McPheeters  contended  "that  the  Synod 
as  such  ought  to  share  in  domestic  missions. ' '  This  was,  perhaps,  the 
first  note  sounded  for  Synodical  home  missions,  but  nothing  was  done. 
The  men  of  this  period  were  not  evangelists,  strictly  speaking,  because 
the  times  and  conditions  of  the  country  and  the  church  seemed  to  pre- 
clude the  possibility  of  many  evangelists. 

But  the  men  of  this  period  were  preeminently  pastors  and  teachers, 
and  many  of  them  able  preachers  and  profound  scholars. 

The  idea  these  men  had  of  their  ordination  vows  was  a  lifetime 
pastorate.  It  was  the  Bible  idea  of  a  shepherd  leading,  guiding,  teach- 
ing,   and   indoctrinating   the   people    in   the   word   of   God   and   in   holy 


D.  I.  Craig,  D.  D.  47 

living,  by  being  one  with  them  in  all  their  joys  and  sorrows,  during  a 
whole  lifetime.  Long  pastorates  was  the  rule,  and  not  the  exception. 
In  this  old  church  of  Alamance  the  pastorates  of  Dr.  David  Caldwell 
and  Dr.  Eli  Caruthers  covered  a  period  of  one  hundred  years!  The  son 
of  David,  Dr.  S.  C.  Caldwell,  spent  his  whole  ministerial  life  at  Sugar 
Creek,  and  again  his  son,  Eev.  J.  M.  M.  Caldwell,  was  for  a  long  time 
in  the  same  pulpit.  Drs.  McCorkle  at  Thyatira,  Hall  at  Bethany,  Hun- 
ter at  Steele  Creek,  McEee  at  Steele  Creek  and  Centre,  Robinson  at 
Poplar  Tent,  Wilson  at  Rocky  River,  and  I  might  mention  Paisley, 
McNair,  McMillan,  Mclntyre,  Stanford,  Currie,  Pickard ,  Witherspoon 
and  many  others  who  were  pastors  of  long  duration.  They  lived  with 
the  people,  preached  on  Sunday,  systematically  taught  or  visited  and 
catechized  the  people  during  the  week,  and  knew  the  needs,  soul  and 
body  of  all.  It  was  an  intimate  and  sacred  lifetime  relation,  and  it 
was  productive  of  strong  Christian  characters,  rooted  and  grounded  in 
the  truth. 

The  present  day  unrest  among  ministers,  and  the  change  from  pas- 
torate to  pastorate  in  rapid  succession,  would  have  shocked  the  church 
a  hundred,  or  even  fifty  years  ago.  I  received  a  letter  from  a  brother 
some  weeks  ago  who  claims  to  have  made  an  investigation,  and  he  says 
that  there  are  only  eighteen  ministers  in  the  Southern  Assembly  who 
have  been  in  their  present  pastorates  for  twenty-five  years  or  more ! 
What  this  teaches  or  portends  in  comparison  with  the  past,  I  do  not  know. 
Is  it  the  lack  of  training,  or  of  patience,  or  of  endurance,  or  what? 
I  do  not  know,  but  I  do  know  that  our  ministerial  forefathers  studied  to 
be  pastors,  and  as  such  many  people  to  this  day  rise  up  and  call  them 
blessed. 

And  besides  being  real  pastors,  many  of  those  I  have  mentioned  were 
teachers.  They  were  teachers  not  only  of  the  Bible,  but  they  taught 
classical  schools.  Many  of  them  were  profound  scholars ;  they  knew 
Hebrew,  Greek  and  Latin,  and  a  great  deal  more;  and  all  of  them  knew 
theology  as  set  forth  in  the  standards  of  the  Presbyterian  church.  There 
were  no  short  cuts  to  the  ministry  in  those  days,  and  while  they  may 
not  have  known  about  so  many  things  as  the  modern  preacher,  yet  they 
knew  the  fundamentals  and  taught  them. 

From  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  War  until  the  opening  of  the 
University  of  North  Carolina  in  ]  795,  and  for  years  afterwards,  there 
were  many  classical  schools  in  this  State,  and  practically  all  of  them  were 
manned  and  taught  by  Presbyterian  ministers.  The  school  of  Dr.  David 
Caldwell  was  famous;  it  was  an  academy,  a  college  and  a  theological 
seminary  all  in  one.  It  is  said  that  he  generally  had  fifty  or  sixty  young 
men  under  him,  and  that  none  ever  left  him  without  becoming  a  Chris- 
tian, and  it  has  been  estimated  that  at  least  fifty  of  his  pupils  became 
Presbyterian  ministers,  and  many  others  occupied  the  highest  positions 
in  the  State.  And  the  schools  of  McCorkle,  Samuel  Caldwell,  the  Wil- 
sons, Wallis,  Hall,  Robinson  and  others  were  of  high  order  and  of  wide 
reputation.  As  teachers  I  might  speak  of  Joseph  Caldwell,  Elisha 
Mitchell  and  James  Phillips,  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  and 
of  Hall  Morrison  and  Samuel  Williamson,  of  Davidson  College,  and  of  the 
excellent  teachers  of  the  Grove  Academy  in  the  east,  and  in  Orange  and 


48       The  Personnel  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina 

Granville  Counties,  but  enough;  it  is  a  fact  that  wherever  a  pastorate 
of  any  considerable  size  was  established,  the  next  proposition  was  a 
school. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  personnel  of  the  ministers  who  lived 
during  the  first  two  or  three  decades  of  the  Synod's  existence,  were 
preeminently  pastors  and  teachers,  and  many  of  them  were  profound 
scholars.  And  I  wish  to  say  just  here,  there  were  scores  of  ruling 
elders  in  those  days  who  were  the  equals  of  the  ministers  in  every  respect, 
except  in  the  preaching  function.  The  defenders  of  the  faith  in  those 
days  were  strong  men,  they  were  well  equipped  men,  they  were  tried 
and  true  men,  and  as  such  they  were  the  leaders  of  the  people,  and 
they  wielded  a  tremendous  influence.  As  pastors  and  teachers  all  the 
time,  Sunday  and  Monday,  they  were  the  moulders  and  builders  of  men 
in  mind  and  thought  and  character.  They  inculcated  principles  and 
doctrines  which  have  made  the  sons  of  North  Carolina  famous,  in 
peace  and  in  war,  in  church  and  in  state,  all  the  world  over.  I  believe 
the  proverbial  conservatism  of  the  people  of  North  Carolina  is  largely 
due  this  day  to  the  undying  influence  of  these  godly  men. 

But  the  times  and  customs  have  changed.  The  long  pastorate  and  the 
old-time  classical  school  are  largely  things  of  the  past.  Today  we  hear 
a  great  deal  about  education  and  schools,  but  it  is  chiefly  the  state 
schools  and  state  education,  and  alas!  the  Bible  is  largely  left  out  of 
them.  Oh,  may  the  present  generation  emulate  many  of  the  char- 
acteristics and  traits  of  our  Presbyterian  forefathers,  who  believed  that 
the  Bible  is  the  foundation  of  all  wholesome  knowledge,  and  the  only 
basis  of  true  liberty  and  happiness,  and  of  life  eternal.  All  honor 
and  praise  to  the  old-time  pastors  and  teachers. 

Without  trespassing  greatly  upon  the  agreement  made  between  the 
speakers  of  this  hour,  there  are  two  or  three  other  men  of  whom  I  wish 
briefly  to  speak.  I  have  briefly  spoken  of  Caldwell,  Caruthers,  and  of 
others  who  were  giants  in  intellect,  great  and  grand  pastors,  preachers 
and  teachers  in  their  day,  and  whose  lives  have  been  written  in  the  pages 
of  books  and  in  the  hearts  of  men;  but  there  are  others  to  whom  this 
Synod  and  the  State  of  North  Carolina  owe  a  debt  of  imperishable  mem- 
ory and  gratitude. 

One  of  these  men  is  the  Rev.  Dr.  H.  G.  Hill,  one  of  the  speakers 
on  this  celebration  occasion.  Dr.  Hill  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
men  of  this  age.  His  long  and  active  life  as  a  member  of  this  Synod, 
his  abundant  labors  in  the  Gospel,  his  profound  wisdom,  his  unflagging 
and  progressive  zeal,  and  his  great  influence  along  all  lines  for  the 
uplift  of  men  and  the  glory  of  God,  have  rendered  him  a  conspicuous 
figure  in  this  Synod  for  many  years.  As  an  ardent  advocate,  a  wise 
counsellor,  a  powerful  debater,  an  eloquent  speaker,  and  a  faithful 
pastor,  he  has  had  but  few  equals.  And  to  him,  perhaps  as  much  as  to 
any  other  man,  is  due  the  honor  and  the  praise  of  the  origin  and  success 
of  the  great  Synodical  Home  Mission  ' '  Movement ' '  in  North  Carolina. 
May  his  bow  of  strength  continue  to  abide. 

In  the  same  class  with  Dr.  Hill,  allow  me  to  mention  the  name  of 
the  Eev.  Dr.  J.  B.  Shearer,  the  recognized  apostle  in  the  church  of  the 
great  cause   of   church   and  Christian   education.     The   long   and   useful 


I).   I.  Craig,  D.  D.  49 

life  of  Dr.  Shearer  as  a  preacher  and  teacher,  and  especially  as  an 
educator  of  young  men,  and  as  an  author  of  many  good  books,  has 
rendered  to  the  church  and  to  the  world  a  service  which  in  influence 
for  good  no  man  can  estimate.  The  splendid  leadership  of  Dr.  Shearer 
in  the  great  cause  of  Christian  education,  in  which  the  Bible  shall  be 
paramount,  is  recognized  by  all.  The  influence  of  his  noble  life,  in  inti- 
mate relationship  with  hundreds  of  choice  young  men,  and  of  his 
splendid  efforts  along  other  lines,  will  reach  down  through  unborn 
generations  and  produce  an  abundant  harvest  to  the  good  of  men  and 
the  glory  of  God.     All  honor  to  him. 

The  other  man  of  whom  I  wish  to  speak  was  a  son  of  Alamance 
Church,  the  Eev.   Calvin   Henderson   Wiley. 

The  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was  only  five  years  old  when  Dr. 
Wiley  was  born,  and  he  was  born  not  far  from  this  spot.  In  his  boyhood 
he  roamed  over  these  hills,  and  his  moral  and  religious  training  was 
received  here  under  Caruthers  and  others  at  Alamance  Church.  In 
early  life  he  was  a  lawyer,  editor,  publisher,  and  the  author  of  various 
books  and  pamphlets.  In  1850-2  he  was  elected  to  the  State  legislature 
and  he  bent  all  of  his  powers  and  energies  in  behalf  of  plans  for  the  edu- 
cation of  the  people,  especially  the  poorer  classes.  At  that  time  it  is 
said  that  one-third  of  the  people  of  the  State  could  neither  read  nor 
write.  The  efforts  of  Dr.  Wiley  and  others  were  successful,  and  he  will 
forever  be  known  as  ' '  the  organizer  and  maker  of  the  public  school 
system  of  North  Carolina".  For  thirteen  years,  without  cessation,  he 
traveled  all  over  the  State,  chiefly  in  a  buggy,  and  gave  his  time,  means 
and  energies  to  the  welfare  of  the  children  of  the  State.  During  the 
whole  time  of  the  Civil  War  the  schools  were  never  closed,  and  to  this 
day  the  children  of  the  State  rise  up  and  call  him  blessed. 

In  after  years  Dr.  Wiley  was  ordained  as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel, 
and  he  became  agent  for  the  American  Bible  Society,  thus  continuing 
unto  his  dying  day  in  the  work  he  loved,  of  educating,  mentally,  morally, 
and  spiritually,  the  people.  Dr.  Wiley  was  a  wonderful  man.  He  had 
a  wonderful  memory  and  a  wonderful  knowledge  of  men  and  things. 
He  was  a  veritable  walking  encyclopedia  of  knowledge  in  his  day,  and 
as  a  man  among  men  he  was  sociable,  generous,  noble  and  true.  While 
the  names  and  memory  of  many  of  the  men  I  have  mentioned  today  will 
never  die  in  this  Synod,  so  the  name  and  memory  of  Calvin  II.  Wiley 
will  never  die  in  this  State. 

All  of  these  great,  good  and  noble  men,  ' '  of  whom  the  world  was 
not  worthy ' ',  though  they  be  dead — all  except  two — yet  they  still  live 
and  speak,  and  they  will  continue  to  live  and  speak  to  generations  yet 
unborn. 

' '  With  us  their  names  shall  live, 
Through  long  succeeding  years, 
Embalmed  with  all  our  hearts  can  give, 
Our  praises  and  our  tears. ' ' 


50 


THE  PERSONNEL  OF  THE  SYNOD  DURING  THE  LAST 
25  YEARS  OF   THE   FIRST   HALF   CENTURY,   FROM 

1838  TO  1863 


H.    G.   HILL,   D.   D. 

Maxton,    N.   C. 

Fathers,  Brethren  and  Christian  Friends: 

By  an  arrangement  with  Dr.  D.  I.  Craig,  I  am  to  speak  of  the  Per- 
sonnel of  the  Synod  During  the  Last  25  Years  of  the  First  Half  Century, 
or  from  1838  to  1863.  During  this  period  I  have  some  personal  acquaint- 
ance with  some  of  the  more  prominent  persons  of  the  Synod.  In  the 
time  allotted  me,  the  notice  of  individuals  must  be  brief  and  some  may 
be  omitted  who  have  rendered  important  service.  When  contemplated, 
grand  natural  objects  exert  a  profound  influence  upon  the  human  soul. 
The  mighty  ocean  with  its  vast  expanse,  swelling  tides  and  tossing  bil- 
lows, awaken  in  the  mind  of  man  emotions  of  wonder  and  of  adoration 
for  the  infinite  Creator.  The  azure  vault  of  heaven,  with  its  splendid  gar- 
niture of  suns  and  stars,  kindles  in  the  soul  the  feelings  of  grandeur  and 
sublimity.  The  mountain  peaks,  "rock-ribbed  and  ancient  as  the  sun", 
piercing  the  clouds  and  dominating  earth 's  vast  and  varied  landscapes, 
arouse  in  the  beholder  emotions  of  beauty,  awe  and  admiration.  But 
if  such  be  the  effects  of  contemplating  the  grand  objects  of  nature, 
should  not  the  soul  be  moved  to  admiration  and  imitation  by  considering 
the  excellent  characters  and  noble  deeds  of  our  brethren  and  friends  who 
have  passed  from  the  earth.     Longfellow  has  truthfully  sung: 

' '  Lives  of  great  men  all  remind  us 
"We  can  make  our  lives  sublime, 
And  departing  leave  behind  us 
Footprints  on  the  sands  of  time. 
Footprints  which  perhaps  another 
Sailing  o  'er  life 's  troubled  main 
Some  forlorn  and  shipwrecked  brother 
Seeing  may  take  heart  again. ' ' 

In  considering  the  notable  personalities  of  this  period  we  desire  to 
group  them  as  evangelists,  educators,  elders  and  preachers. 

/.     Observe  the  Evangelists. 

At  this  period  of  the  Synod's  history,  evangelists  proper,  that  is, 
ministers  without  stated  charge,  and  preaching  the  Gospel  in  destitute 
regions,  were  comparatively  few.  Synodical  evangelization  was  not  born 
until  1881,  and  did  not  reach  maturity  and  efficiency  until  1888.     Yet 


H.  G.  Hill,  D.  I).  51 

the  three  original  Presbyteries  had  a  few  missionaries  and  missionary 
pastors.  The  Rev.  Charles  Phillips,  D.  D.,  and  the  Rev.  Calvin  Wiley, 
who  never  had  regular  charges,  traveled  extensively  and  preached  the 
Gospel  with  power  in  many  places  for  twenty  years  before  they  were 
ordained  ministers.  The  Rev.  Nelson  Mebane,  of  Orange  Presbytery, 
was  a  laborious  evangelist  in  Texas  during  his  early  ministry.  The 
speaker  has  good  reason  to  remember  him,  as  he  was  the  first  person 
who  called  his  attention  in  boyhood  to  personal  religion.  Of  a  cheerful, 
genial  disposition,  he  could  talk  to  old  or  young  upon  the  subject  of 
religion,  with  the  ease  and  naturalness  that  he  would  show  in  conversing 
upon  any  worldly  topic.  In  his  youth  the  speaker,  with  deep  interest, 
has  heard  brother  Mebane  instruct  and  entertain  Orange  Presbytery 
by  relating  during  the  "free  conversation  on  the  subject  of  religion", 
his  adventures  and  experiences  as  an  evangelist  in  Texas.  During  the 
war  many  pastors  were  sent  by  their  Presbyteries  to  preach  in  the  Army 
of  Northern  Virginia  and  through  them  multitudes  of  our  brave,  self- 
sacrificing  soldiers,  who  laid  down  their  lives  for  their  country,  heard 
Christ 's  saving  gospel. 

II.     But  Education  Must  Now  Claim  Our  Attention. 

Presbyterianism  has  ever  been  associated  with  education.  They 
confer  lasting  benefits  upon  society,  the  church  and  the  state,  who 
instruct  and  train  the  young.  Some  have  done  this,  as  presidents  or 
professors  of  colleges.  Gov.  David  Swain,  long  president  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  North  Carolina,  was  noted  for  his  administrative  ability,  his 
extensive  learning,  and  his  skill  in  imparting  knowledge.  Dr.  Hall  Mor- 
rison, the  first  president  of  Davidson  College,  retired  from  office  early 
on  account  of  ill  health,  but  left  his  impress  upon  the  institution  as  well 
as  upon  his  own  family,  some  of  whom  became  allied  to  the  most  dis- 
tinguished men  in  our  land.  Dr.  Drury  Lacy  was  also  president  of 
Davidson  College,  a  man  of  literary  culture,  of  biblical  knowledge,  a 
forcible  preacher,  of  genial  disposition,  of  great  simplicity  of  charac- 
ter well  adapted  to  winning  the  young. 

We  might  mention  other  men  who  were  excellent  professors  in  these 
institutions  if  time  permitted.  But  we  must  refer  to  some  teachers  of 
classical  and  high  schools.  Among  these  Mr.  William  Bingham  and 
his  two  sons,  Col.  Wm.  Bingham  and  Major  Robert  Bingham,  hold  a 
high  place.  William  Bingham  conducted  for  many  years  a  successful 
school  founded  by  his  father  and  he  was  noted  for  his  ability  to  manage 
boys,  maintain  discipline,  and  to  impart  valuable  knowledge.  His 
son,  Col.  William  Bingham,  was  an  instructor  of  scholarly  attainments, 
an  author  of  classical  text -books,  and  a  man  of  winning  manners.  His 
son,  Major  Robert  Bingham,  still  survives,  at  an  advanced  age,  and  now 
conducts  near  Asheville,  a  flourishing  school  that  maintains,  untarnished, 
the  reputation  won  during  the  century.  Another  educator  of  marked 
ability  and  service  was  Rev.  Alexander  Wilson,  D.  D.  He  presided  over 
"Caldwell  Institute"  at  Hillsboro,  N.  C,  under  the  care  of  Orange 
Presbytery,  for  years  and  there  taught  many  youths  and  young 
men.  When  this  institution  closed  he  successfully  conducted  his  own 
classical  school  at  Melville,  in  Alamance  County. 


52  The  Personnel  of  the  Synod  from  1838  to  1863 

A  third  eminent  teacher  of  boys  was  Mr.  Ralph  Graves,  who  main- 
tained a  well  patronized  school  in  Granville  County,  and  was  afterwards 
associated  with  Mr.  Horner  in  Oxford,  N.  C.  Dr.  Eobert  Burwell  and 
his  gifted  wife  and  son,  Mr.  John  B.  Burwell,  did  important  educational 
work  for  our  young  women  in  Hillsboro,  Charlotte  and  Raleigh,  during 
many  years.  They  not  only  informed  their  minds  and  trained  their 
hearts,  but  imparted  to  them  those  social  accomplishments  which  made 
them  queens  of  homes  and  attractive  members  of  society.  At  Hillsboro 
during  a  series  of  years  the  Misses  Nash  and  Kollock  conducted  an 
education  for  young  girls  and  women  that  developed  the  mind  and  trained 
the  moral  feelings,  and  directed  the  soul  to  its  religious  obligations,  so 
as  to  render  them  ornaments  to  social  life  and  efficient  workers  for 
Christ 's  kingdom. 

Another  important  class  of  educators  is  to  be  found  among  our  edi- 
tors, writers  and  teachers  of  common  and  mission  schools.  About  1857 
Rev.  George  McNeill,  of  Fayetteville,  N.  C,  founded  the  North  Carolina 
Presbyterian.  This  Synodical  religious  paper,  now  called  The  Presby- 
terian Standard,  has  exerted  and  still  exerts  a  powerful  influence  upon 
the  intelligence  and  pious  development  of  our  church  and  common- 
wealth. It  has  been  said :  ' '  We  take  no  note  of  time  but  by  its  loss ' '. 
The  same  may  be  affirmed  of  our  church  paper.  At  the  close  of  the 
war,  when  the  paper  was  suspended  for  a  few  months,  because  its  office 
was  destroyed  by  the  Federal  army,  Orange  Presbytery  had  to  meet  two 
successive  weeks  to  get  a  quorum,  because  there  was  no  church  organ  to 
give  the  needful  notice.  Rev.  George  McNeill,  who  founded  this  paper, 
was  an  editor  of  sound  judgment  and  a  writer  of  racy,  condensed  and 
pungent  articles.  His  brother,  Eev.  James  McNeill,  the  Rev.  Willis 
Miller  and  his  talented  wife  who  wrote  prose  and  poetry  over  the  name 
of  ' '  Luola ' ',  did  excellent  work  on  the  paper.  The  Rev.  James  McNeill, 
going  into  the  army  as  a  colonel  of  cavalry,  after  gallant  service,  died 
in  battle  and  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Jno.  M.  Sherwood  as  editor. 
He  afterwards,  as  proprietor  and  editor,  conducted  the  paper  with  mani- 
fest ability  and  marked  success  until  1872.  During  the  period  we  are 
considering,  and  subsequently,  Mrs.  Cornelia  Spencer,  of  Chapel  Hill,  was 
a  frequent  contributor  to  the  North  Carolina  Presbyterian,  and  fur- 
nished articles  containing  wit  and  wisdom,  and  well  calculated  to  edu- 
cate thoughtful  persons.  Another  woman  of  rare  gifts  did  much  for 
the  religious  education  of  our  people.  This  was  Mrs.  E.  A.  McRae,  of 
Centre  Church,  Fayetteville  Presbytery.  She  possessed  intelligence 
schools  and  Sabbath  schools  and  mission  schools  in  the  western  part  of 
the  State,  and  as  the  organizer  and  quickener  of  mission  societies,  she  had 
few  equals  and  no  superior  among  the  women  of  her  generation.  In  her 
Presbytery  and  at  her  own  expense,  she  visited  more  than  60  congrega- 
tions to  found  and  invigorate  women's  mission  societies.  Her  labors 
extended  outside  her  own  Presbytery  and  beyond  the  period  we  are  now 
considering. 

Among  the  educators  of  this  Synod  the  Rev.  Calvin  Wiley  should  not 
be  forgotten.  For  many  years  he  was  superintendent  of  the  common 
school  system  of  the  state,  and  did  much  laborious  and  self-sacrificing 
work  in  promoting  their  efficiency.     He  was   an   author   of  pronounced 


H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D.  53 

ability,  a  writer  of  many  articles  of  chaste  diction  and  approved  excel- 
lence, and  a  preacher — orthodox,  forcible  and  impressive.  North  Caro- 
lina would  not  only  do  homage  to  sterling  worth,  but  honor  herself  by 
rearing  to  him  a  monument. 

But  evangelists  and  educators  in  different  departments  of  effort  have 
not  been  the  only  efficient  servitors  of  our  Synod  and  State.  A  third 
class  of  workers  have  rendered  efficient  service. 

III.  Many  ruling  elders  have  been  conspicuous  for  their  acquire- 
ments, zeal  and  labors.  Only  a  few  can  be  specially  mentioned.  They 
may  be  classified  as  business,  cultured,  beneficent  and  spiritually  minded 
elders.  Among  business  elders  may  be  named  Mr.  Jesse  Lindsay,  of 
Greensboro,  N.  C.  He  was  a  man  of  sound  judgment  and  diligent 
application,  having  talent  for  secular  business.  But  his  business  ability 
he  was  willing  to  consecrate  to  Christ  and  the  church.  For  years  he  was 
the  punctual,  faithful  and  accurate  treasurer  of  Orange  Presbytery. 
Another  elder  of  this  class  was  the  honorable  Abraham  Venable,  of 
Granville  County.  He  was  an  able  lawyer,  a  genial  companion,  a  fluent 
speaker,  a  member  of  Congress  for  years,  and  a  man  of  extensive  and 
varied  knowledge.  But  he  was  a  diligent  student  and  expounder  of 
the  Bible  and  as  conspicuous  in  church  courts  as  in  state  tribunals  or  the 
councils  of  the  nation.  He  often  preached  to  the  colored  people  and  led 
acceptably  the  devotions  of  all  classes.  Still  another  eminent  business 
elder  was  Mr.  Jas.  S.  Amis,  of  Oxford,  1ST.  C.  He  was  a  lawyer,  an 
intelligent  political  leader,  a  wise  legislator,  a  well-informed  Presbyterian, 
a  devout  Christian,  and  an  active  ruler  in  the  house  of  God. 

But  some  elders  have  been  noted  for  their  culture  as  well  as  for  their 
piety.  One  of  these  was  Mr.  Bartholomew  Fuller,  of  Fayetteville,  N".  C. 
He  was  a  well-read  lawyer,  a  judicious  counselor,  an  efficient  editor,  and 
a  man  of  varied  literary  tastes  and  acquirements.  Yet  an  earnest  fol- 
lower of  Christ,  he  desired  to  make  his  gifts  and  attainments  subservient 
to  the  Lord's  kingdom.  One  of  the  most  cultivated  ruling  elders  in 
this  Synod  was  Mr.  Marcellus  Lanier,  of  Oxford,  N.  O.  Learned  in 
law,  he  would  have  graced  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State.  A  forcible 
advocate,  he  habitually  won  his  cases.  A  diligent  student,  he  constantly 
added  to  his  store  of  knowledge.  He  was  conversant  with  Latin,  Greek, 
German,  and  had  some  knowledge  of  Hebrew.  He  probably  read  the 
Scriptures  in  more  languages  than  any  other  layman  in  the  State.  Nor 
was  his  a  mere  cursory  reading.  He  studied  critically  the  text  that  he 
might  interpret  it  aright.  Yet  he  was  willing  to  devote  the  treasures  of 
his  learning  to  the  service  of  Christ. 

Some  ruling  elders  have  not  been  remarkable  for  business  talent 
or  broad  culture,  yet  on  account  of  personal  goodness  and  sympathetic 
beneficence,  have  led  very  useful  lives.  One  of  these  was  Mr.  Nicholas  M. 
Lewis,  of  Milton,  N.  C.  He  was  not  distinguished  for  extraordinary 
business  capacity,  nor  very  liberal  culture,  nor  extensive  learning. 
But  like  Barnabas,  he  was  a  good  man  with  a  benevolent  heart  and  lead- 
ing a  beneficent  life.  He  was  kind,  sympathetic,  and  helpful  to  his 
fellowmen,  and  especially  to  the  young.  He  had  large  means,  and 
having  no  children  of  his  own,  he  was  the  father  of  the  village.  To 
him  parents  confidently  and  gladly  committed  their  children  for  care  and 


54  The  Personnel  of  the  Synod  from  1838  to  1863 

guidance.  In  manly  exercises,  in  hunting  parties,  in  fishing  excursions, 
in  social  gatherings,  in  the  Sabbath  school,  in  prayer  meetings,  and  in 
the  sanctuary,  his  example  and  influence  were  important  factors  in 
moulding  the  characters  and  guiding  the  conduct  of  children  and  youth. 
Few  men  in  the  community  in  which  he  lived  did  more  for  elevating  the 
moral  standards  and  promoting  the  enjoyment  of  children  and  youth, 
of  young  men  and  women. 

But  another  class  of  elders  claim  attention  and  exert  a  blessed  influ- 
ence. They  may  be  termed  "spiritually  minded"  elders,  or  those  who 
seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  His  righteousness.  They  attract 
attention  by  putting  religion  manifestly  first  in  their  lives.  We  shall 
mention  only  one  elder  of  this  class.  This  was  Judge  Jesse  G-.  Shep- 
herd, of  Fayetteville,  N.  C.  He  possessed  legal  lore,  social  position  and 
generous  culture.  He  had  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  all  classes  in 
his  community.  An  irreligious  man  in  the  town  once  was  about  to 
affirm  :  "A  man  cannot  be  a  lawyer  and  a  Christian ' ',  but  checked  him- 
self and  said,  ' '  No,  I  will  not  assert  that,  for  Judge  Shepherd  is  a 
lawyer  and  a  Christian. ' '  He  would  not  advocate  an  unjust  cause.  He 
was  as  prominent  in  church  courts  as  in  those  of  the  state  and  would 
always  go  to  judicatories,  even  when  it  demanded  self-sacrifice,  when 
sent  by  his  session.  He  was  an  influential  member  of  the  Assembly  at 
Augusta,  Ga.,  that  constituted  the  Southern  Church.  Nor  was  he  less 
disposed  to  serve  as  a  ruling  elder  in  his  own  home  church  and  in  a 
private  circle  than  in  public  and  conspicuous  stations.  As  clerk  of  the 
session,  as  counselor  respecting  religious  interests,  and  as  a  visitor  in 
his  work  of  his  congregation,  he  was  eminently  faithful  and  efficient. 
Without  any  prompting  from  the  pastor,  he  would  visit  the  aged,  the 
infirm,  the  sick,  the  distressed,  the  bereaved,  and  the  needy.  He  would 
expound  to  them  the  Scriptures,  counsel  them,  pray  with  them  and  give 
them  needful  help.  His  visits  were  eagerly  expected  and  left  behind 
them,  like  the  sunshine,  a  treasured  benediction.  Such  was  the  character 
and  life  of  a  heavenly-minded  man,  who  made  earthly  employments 
subordinate  and  tributary  to  Christian  service. 

IV.  And  now  ice  can  out  briefly  mention  a  few  preachers  of  con- 
spicuous gifts  and  labors. 

Father  Daniel  Penick,  of  Rocky  River  Church,  was  long  a  noted 
member  of  this  Synod.  He  was  for  years  known  for  his  orthodoxy, 
his  fervent  devotion  and  his  meek,  quiet  Christian  spirit.  Dr.  Arnold 
Miller,  of  Charlotte,  was  celebrated  for  his  learning,  his  pastoral  ten- 
derness and  sympathy  and  preaching  power.  Dr.  W.  A.  Wood,  of  States- 
ville,  was  highly  esteemed  for  his  scholarship,  his  brotherly  spirit,  and 
his  edifying  sermons.  Dr.  Jethro  Rumple,  of  Salisbury,  was  for  many 
years  a  beloved  pastor,  a  forcible  preacher,  and  a  wise  counselor,  who 
in  many  stations  commanded  the  confidence  and  loving  admiration  of 
the  church. 

Dr.  John  A.  Gretter,  of  Greensboro,  N.  C,  who,  as  a  boy,  I  knew 
slightly,  was  deemed  an  able  and  excellent  preacher.  Dr.  Jacob  Henry 
Smith,  of  the  same  church,  with  whom  I  was  intimately  associated  for 


//.  G.  Hill,  I).  V.  55 

years,  was  a  man  of  varied  gifts  and  attainments  He  possessed  unusu- 
ally ripe  and  regularly-nurtured  scholarship,  and  was  a  very  diligent 
and  successful  sermonizer.  He  was  a  faithful  pastor  and  father,  and 
one  of  the  best  legacies  he  left  to  the  church  was  a  number  of  gifted  and 
well-trained  sons.  The  Rev.  N.  H.  Harding,  D.  D.,  was  one  of  the  first 
preachers  known  to  the  speaker.  He  was  a  man  of  varied  acquirements,  of 
deep  spirituality,  of  dauntless  courage,  of  ardent  devotion,  of  sympathy 
with  the  young,  of  impressive  pulpit  power,  and  of  such  elevated  char- 
acter as  to  command  the  reverence  of  his  community.  The  Rev.  Jacob 
Doll,  as  clerk  of  Orange  Presbytery,  and  of  the  Synod,  was  a  notable 
figure  in  this  body  for  a  number  of  years.  He  was  a  sound,  instructive 
preacher,  a  genial  companion,  and  a  diligent  student  for  years.  He  was 
noted  for  the  accuracy  with  which  he  kept  his  records,  and  for  his 
ability  as  a  presbyter  and  presiding  officer.  He  would  transact  more 
business  in  half  a  day  than  most  men  would  in  a  whole  one.  The  Rev. 
S.  A.  Stanfield  was  also  a  man  of  excellent  gifts  and  attainments.  He 
had  sound  judgment  in  practical  affairs.  He  was  a  good  Biblical 
scholar.  He  was  an  effective  gospel  preacher,  analyzing  and  arrang- 
ing his  subject  in  a  logical  manner.  He  was  happy  in  employing 
familiar  illustrations,  and  his  preaching  appealed  to  common  sense 
business  men.  The  Rev.  John  M.  Sherwood,  of  Fayetteville,  N.  C, 
was  a  very  capable  preacher,  pastor  and  editor.  Though  he  edited 
the  North  Carolina  Presbyterian  in  his  later  years,  yet  he  never  ceased 
to  preach  the  Gospel  in  churches  in  the  surrounding  country,  and 
was  ever  popular  and  in  demand.  Father  Hector  McLean,  of  Fayette- 
ville Presbytery,  was  a  revered  and  honored  member  of  that  body,  and 
a  faithful  and  laborious  preacher,  until  the  infirmities  of  age  did  not 
allow  him  to  toil.  Dr.  Neill  McKay,  of  the  same  Presbytery,  was  a  man 
of  acute  mind,  a  sound  preacher,  an  able  debater,  and  an  active  member  of 
church  judicatories.  Rev.  J.  P.  McPherson  wTas  for  many  years  the 
stated  clerk  of  Fayetteville  Presbytery  and  very  diligent  and  accurate  in 
performing  his  duties.  As  a  preacher  he  was  scriptural,  faithful  and 
forcible  in  the  preparation  and  delivery  of  sermons.  Dr.  David  Fairley 
had  a  long,  laborious  and  fruitful  ministry.  For  about  fifty  years  he 
was  the  active  pastor  of  many  country  churches.  He  was  attractive  in 
his  manners  and  popular  among  all  classes,  and  especially  to  young- 
people.  Yet  he  did  not  suppress  or  compromise  Christian  principles 
and  doctrines.  He  prepared  his  sermons  with  great  care  and  delivered 
them  with  energy  and  unction.  He  was  habitually  an  edifying  preacher, 
heard  with  gladness  by  those  to  whom  he  most  often  published  Gospel 
tidings.  The  fruits  of  his  ministry  pre  multiplied  and  apparent  in 
every  congregation  in  which  he  labored.  They  are  found  in  converts 
made,  in  believers  confirmed  and  matured,  and  in  young  men  led  to  be 
heralds  of  the  cross.  One  of  his  own  sons  is  proclaiming  the  Gospel 
which  his  father  taught,  and  he  once  wrote  me  that  "he  had  brought 
into  the  ministry  16  young  men".  But  one  of  the  most  impressive 
preachers  of  this  Synod  known  to  my  boyhood,  was  Dr.  James  Phillips, 
of  Chapel  Hill.  He  was  a  man  of  rare  pulpit  powTer,  and  many  of  his 
sermons  linger  in  my  memory  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  half  a 
century.     He  studied  his  theme  profoundly,  he  arranged  it  with  clearness 


56  The  Personnel  of  the  Synod  from  1838  to  1863 

and  logical  accuracy  and  he  wrote  his  sermons  in  chaste  and  elegant  dic- 
tion. He  delivered  his  discourses  with  a  tenderness,  a  pathos  and  a 
spiritual  power  that  swayed  the  mind  and  touched  the  heart.  The 
stranger  at  first  might  mark  the  contortions  of  features  that  intense  feel- 
ing caused,  but  soon  he  would  be  so  gripped  by  the  speaker's  subject  and 
earnestness  as  to  forget  everything  else.  I  once  heard  him  preach  a 
sermon  from  the  words,  ' '  Ought  not  Christ  to  suffer  these  things  and 
to  enter  into  His  glory ' '  His  theme  was  ' '  Christ 's  Glory,  the  Fruit 
of  His  Passion ' ',  and  to  this  day  I  can  remember  the  thrill  produced  by 
his  grand  thoughts  and  impassioned  words.  On  another  occasion  I  heard 
him  preach  from  the  text,  ' '  Though  He  was  rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  He 
became  poor,  that  we  through  His  poverty  might  be  rich."  As  he 
portrayed  Christ's  riches  before  incarnation,  the  depth  of  poverty  into 
which  He  descended  for  our  sakes,  and  the  riches  of  saints  attained 
through  Jesus'  poverty,  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  congregation  were 
profoundly  stirred.  The  speaker  himself  manifested  the  deepest  emo- 
tion and  strong  men  bowed  their  heads  and  wept.  My  hearers,  men  like 
these  have  borne  their  testimony  and  passed  from  the  earth.  They  have 
left  with  us  their  record;  their  names  are  registered  in  the  Lamb's 
Book  of  Life,  and  they  have  joined  ' '  the  General  Assembly  and  church  of 
the  first  born  whose  names  are  written  in  Heaven ' '.  Shall  we  not  imi- 
tate their  example  and  emulate  their  deeds? 


57 


THE  LAST  FIFTY  YEARS— THE  PRESBYTERIAN 
CHURCH  AN  EVANGELISTIC  AGENCY 


REV.   R.   F.   CAMPBELL,   D.   D. 
Asheville,    N.   C. 


The  subject  assigned  me  implies  two  things:  That  during  the 
first  half  century  of  its  existence  this  Synod  was  not,  to  a  high  degree, 
an  evangelistic  agency;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  that  its  history  for 
the  last  fifty  years  has  furnished  a  notable  object  lesson  in  aggressive 
evangelism  of  the  Presbyterian  type. 

I  say  "of  the  Presbyterian  type",  because,  according  to  the  defini- 
tion of  our  standards,  an  evangelist  is  not  an  irresponsible  ' '  revivalist ' ', 
but  a  minister  under  ecclesiastical  control,  who  is  ' '  commissioned  to 
preach  the  word  and  administer  the  sacraments  in  foreign  countries,  fron- 
tier settlements,  or  the  destitute  parts  of  the  church".  A  Synodical 
evangelist,  therefore,  is  simply  a  home  missionary  in  the  destitute 
parts  of  the  Synod,  and  Synodical  evangelism  is  only  another  name  for 
domestic  or  home  missions  conducted  by  the  Synod.  I  am  to  speak, 
therefore,  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  during  the  last 
fifty  years  as  an  active  and  successful  agency  in  home  missions. 

The  growth  of  an  institution  may  be  illustrated  by  the  growth  of  a 
plant.  ' '  The  kingdom  of  Heaven  is  like  a  grain  of  mustard  seed '  \ 
Carrying  out  the  simile  of  vegetation,  the  development  of  the  Synod 's 
evangelistic  work  has  passed  through  four  stages  or  periods:  (1)  The 
period  of  early  germination;  (2)  A  period  of  blight;  (3)  A  period  of 
revegetation ;    and    (4)    A  period  of  vigorous   growth   and   propagation. 

1.     The  Period  of  Early  Germination  (1852-1861). 

To  include  the  beginning  of  this  period  I  must  go  back  eleven  years 
beyond  the  date  indicated  by  the  title  of  my  address,  for  as  I  examine 
the  life  history  of  this  tree  with  its  wide-spreading  branches,  I  find  that 
the  seed  of  the  Synod's  home  mission  work  was  planted  in  1852,  when 
the  following  resolution  was  adopted :  ' '  Resolved,  That  this  Synod  will 
appoint  one  agent  on  each  of  the  boards  of  foreign  missions,  domestic 
missions,  and  education,  and  that  these  agents  be  required  to  take  into 
consideration  the  whole  field  committed  to  their  supervision,  and  present 
at  each  meeting  of  Synod  a  written  report  of  all  that  is  doing  within  the 
boundaries  of  the  Synod  on  the  subject  assigned  to  them;  and  that 
the  consideration  of  these  reports  shall  be  a  special  order  at  each  meeting 
of  the  Synod. ' ' 

This  marked  the  beginning  of  a  neiv  era.  It  indicated  that  the 
Synod  had  begun  to  feel  the  community  consciousness,  a  sense  of  cor- 
porate responsibility  for  evangelisation  at  home  and  abroad. 


58     Last  Fifty  Years — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

A  contemporary  witness  declares  that  "before  this  no  order  of  the 
day  was  ever  made  on  the  docket  for  an  hour  to  be  devoted  to  the 
consideration  of  missions.  Often  did  the  Synod  meet  and  adjourn 
without  speaking  a  single  word  or  hearing  a  single  report  for  the  fur- 
therance of  any  of  the  boards,  only  as  it  came  from  some  agent  from 
abroad."      (Rev.  Archibald  Baker.) 

The  good  results  of  the  new  policy  soon  became  manifest.  By  1859 
the  contributions  to  Foreign  Missions  had  increased  more  than  $3,000 
and  the  gifts  to  home  missions  had  grown  from  $1,714  to  $6,424,  an 
increase  of  nearly  275  per  cent,  in  seven  years. 

If  the  Synod  ever  erects  a  Hall  of  Fame,  there  should  be  placed  upon 
its  walls  a  conspicuous  tablet  to  the  memory  of  the  Rev.  S.  A.  Stan- 
field,  who  introduced  the  resolution  that  marked  the  change  from  the 
old  order  to  the  new. 

It  was  in  this  period  that  the  Synod,  having  become  conscious  of 
itself  as  an  evangelistic  agency,  felt  the  need  of  an  organ  for  the 
expression  of  this  consciousness  and  established  in  1857  "The  North  Car- 
olina  Presbyterian",   now   "The   Presbyterian   Standard". 

Other  religious  papers  have  made  attempts  from  time  to  time  to 
swallow  and  assimilate  this  organ,  but  the  Synod  has  always  risen  in 
its  might  and  rescued  its  ' '  darling  from  the  power  of  the  dogs ' '. 

2.  A  Period  of  Blight  (1861-1868). 

The  young  tree  which  had  made  so  fair  a  start  was  now  blistered 
and  blighted  by  the  fires  of  the  war  between  the  sections. 

The  army  was  recognized  as  the  neediest  and  most  clamant  field 
of  evangelism,  and  many  of  the  Synod 's  ministers  went  as  chaplains 
to  kindle  and  keep  alive  the  flame  of  piety  in  the  hearts  of  those  who 
were  enveloped  in  the  flames  of  war. 

During  these  four  years  of  blasting  heat,  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
North  Carolina  gained  only  eight  ministers  and  five  churches,  and  lost 
more  than  two  thousand  communicants !  The  loss  consisted  very  largely 
of  young  men,  in  the  prime  of  life,  who  were  the  hope  of  the  church,  some 
of  them  candidates  for  the  ministry. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  there  were  only  five  home  missionaries  at 
work  within  the  bounds  of  the  Synod,  as  against  nineteen  at  the  opening 
of  the  great  conflict,  and  the  contributions  to  home  missions  had  fallen 
from  $6,424  to  about  $1,000. 

3.  The  Period  of  Revegetation   (1868-1888). 

For  several  years  after  the  close  of  the  war,  the  interest  in  home 
missions  seemed  almost  dead.  But,  as  the  patriarch  Job  remarked  long 
ago,  ' '  There  is  hope  of  a  tree,  even  if  it  be  cut  down,  that  it  will  sprout 
again,  and  that  the  tender  branch  thereof  will  not  cease.  Though  the 
root  thereof  wax  old  in  the  earth,  and  the  stock  thereof  die  in  the 
ground;  yet  through  the  scent  of  water  it  will  bud,  and  bring  forth 
boughs  like  a  plant."  A  few  years  ago  there  was  a  great  freeze  in 
California  in  the  spring  of  the  year,  when  the  sap  was  beginning  to 
rise.  As  a  result  many  trees  several  feet  in  diameter  seemed  to  be  hope- 
lessly blighted.  The  bark  was  not  only  blackened  through  and  through, 
but  in  many  cases  was  split  clear  to  the  wood  almost  from  top  to  bottom 
of  the  trees.    Scores  of  these  trees  were  cut  down,  on  the  theory  that  they 


Eev.  B.  F.  Campbell,  D.  1).  59 

were  beyond  resuscitation.  In  many  instances,  however,  wiser  counsels 
prevailed  and,  after  pruning,  the  blighted  trunks  were  allowed  to  stand. 
And  now  the  news  comes  that  these  trees  on  which  the  bark  was  split  and 
black  and  loosened  from  the  wood  have  been  rejuvenated.  The  bark 
is  green  and  full  of  sap,  and  the  boughs  have  put  forth  rich  and  abund- 
ant foliage. 

So  it  was  with  the  Synod's  tree  of  home  missions.  Blighted  by  the 
war,  it  stood  several  years  like  a  blackened  trunk  without  hope  of 
resuscitation.  But  all  at  once  the  pruned  and  blighted  tree  began  to 
show  fresh  signs  of  life.  In  1868  it  sent  out  a  bough  toward  the  sea  in 
the  new  Presbytery  of  Wilmington,  which  was  formed  with  the  avowed 
purpose  of  evangelizing  eastern  North  Carolina.  The  next  year  it  put 
forth  a  branch  toward  the  mountains  in  the  erection  of  the  Presbytery 
of  Mecklenburg  for  the  evangelization  of  the  western  part  of  the  state. 

As  this  multiplication  by  division  has  been  a  distinctive  element  in 
the  policy  of  this  Synod's  work  of  home  missions,  the  cutting  off 
of  territory  belonging  to  the  older  Presbyteries  to  form  new  ones  for 
the  purpose  of  more  thorough  evangelization,  ought  not  to  pass  unnoticed. 
The  Eev.  S.  C.  Alexander,  in  his  little  book,  ' '  Miracles  and  Events ' ', 
has  given  an  interesting  account  of  the  struggle  that  took  place  over  this 
question.  ' '  Immediately  after  the  war, ' '  says  he,  ' '  some  of  us  thought 
it  best  to  have  "Wilmington  Presbytery  set  up  for  the  express  purpose  of 
evangelizing  eastern  North  Carolina.  The  proposition  met  with  earnest 
opposition  by  some  strong  men  in  the  Presbytery,  who  said  it  would  be 
a  waste  of  men  and  money  to  try  any  more  to  evangelize  that  country. 
They  said  we  have  sent  men  into  that  section  of  the  state  for  forty 
years  and  nothing  has  been  done.  We  answered  that  was  because  the 
men  you  sent  into  that  wilderness  ran  in  and  then  out;  they  did  not 
stay  long  enough  to  raise  a  crop  of  saints.  The  night  before  Pres- 
bytery met  was  spent  by  Mr.  Alexander  in  prayer — the  only  time  in  his 
life,  he  says,  that  he  ever  spent  a  whole  night  in  prayer.  The  next 
day  the  opposition  gradually  melted  away.  The  Presbytery  decided  by 
practically  a  unanimous  vote  to  ask  for  the  erection  of  the  new  Presby- 
tery and  Mr.  Alexander  was  elected  evangelist  for  eastern  North  Caro- 
lina. 

The  struggle  over  the  setting  off  of  Wilmington  Presbytery  was  one 
of  the  decisive  battles  in  the  development  of  the  Synod's  policy  of 
reaching  the  destitutions  within  its  bounds.  Since  that  battle  was  won, 
the  Presbyteries  of  Mecklenburg,  Albemarle,  Asheville  and  King's  Moun- 
tain have  been  erected,  and  a  movement  for  the  creation  of  several 
additional  Presbyteries  has  been  inaugurated. 

This  policy  should  be  projected  to  a  higher  plane  in  an  overture  from 
the  Synods  concerned,  asking  the  General  Assembly  to  erect  the  Synod 
of  Appalachia,  to  be  constituted  of  the  Presbyteries  in  the  Appalachian 
Mountains.  Why  should  not  this  venerable  body  signalize  the  beginning 
of  the  second  century  of  its  life  by  requesting  the  other  Synods  having 
mountain  mission  fields  to  unite  with  it  in  appointing  a  joint  committee 
to  investigate  this  question  and  report  the  result  as  a  basis  for  future 
action  1 


60     Last  Fifty  Years — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

From  1869  to  1881  the  Synod,  though  not  yet  engaged  in  home  mission 
work,  showed  an  increasing  interest  in  the  work  of  home  missions  car- 
ried on  by  the  Presbyteries.  In  reviewing  the  history  of  this  period, 
we  can  touch  only  two  or  three  of  the  high  places.  In  1875  a  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  consider  ' '  the  whole  question  of  the  absolute 
and  relative  aggressiveness  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Caro- 
lina, to  indicate  the  causes  of  delinquencies  and  point  out  the  remedy. ' ' 
The  committee  reported  that  the  church  had  not  done  its  full  duty,  and 
recommended  the  more  general  employment  of  evangelists,  more  earnest 
efforts  of  pastors  to  do  missionary  work  in  regions  bordering  on  their 
churches,  and  an  awakening  of  the  elders  and  deacons  to  the  importance 
of  their  work  as  an  aid  to  evangelization.  Again  in  1879  the  Synod 
took  a  long  step  forward  in  electing  a  Synodical  Agent  of  Evangelistic 
Labor.  By  this  action  the  worTc  of  home  missions  was  given  separate 
and  individual  standing,  having  been  previously  combined  with  susten- 
tation  and  the  invalid  fund  under  the  care  of  the  agent  of  sustentation. 
The  following  year  the  Rev.  C.  M.  Payne,  who  had  been  elected  agent 
of  evangelistic  labor,  made  his  first  report  in  which  he  showed  that  of 
the  94  counties  in  the  State,  there  were  29  in  which  there  was  no  Presby- 
terian Church,  and  24  which  had  only  one  Presbyterian  Church  each, 
and  that  for  these  53  counties  there  were  only  two  evangelists,  and  that 
the  total  amount  contributed  in  all  the  Presbyteries  for  evangelistic 
work  was  less  than  $2,300. 

The  year  1881  deserves  to  be  marked  with  red,  or  to  speak  in  accord- 
ance with  the  color  scheme  of  Presbyterianism,  with  ultra-marine  letters, 
on  the  Synod's  calendar.  The  Synod  met  in  Salisbury.  A  paper  was 
offered  by  the  Reverend  (they  should  be  styled  the  Bight-Eeverend) 
H.  G.  Hill,  Luther  McKinnon,  D.  E.  Jordan,  W.  E.  Mcllwaine,  and 
C.  M.  Payne,  recommending  that  the  Synod  itself  undertake  by  Synodical 
effort  to  reach  the  unevangelized  parts  of  the  State.  This  was  considered 
so  radical  and  dangerous  a  proposition  that  only  after  a  hard  fought 
battle,  extending  at  intervals  through  several  days,  did  victory  perch 
on  the  banner  of  the  progressives.  Following  this  action  the  Synod 
elected  two  Synodical  evangelists,  the  first  of  their  kind,  and  a  Synodical 
committee  of  home  missions,  the  first  of  its  kind,  was  appointed,  con- 
sisting of  the  chairmen  of  the  Presbyterial  committees,  to  take  super- 
vision of  the  Synod 's  work. 

This  action  cleared  the  way  for  the  later  development  of  Synodical  home 
missions.  It  prepared  room  for  the  tree  that  had  been  planted  in  1852, 
that  ' '  it  might  take  root  and  fill  the  land,  that  the  mountains  might  be 
covered  with  the  shadow  of  it,  and  that  the  boughs  thereof  might  be  like 
the  goodly  cedars;  that  it  might  send  out  its  branches  unto  the  sea, 
and  its  shoots  unto  the  river. ' ' 

Memorable,  however,  as  this  action  was,  it  was  followed  by  a  period 
of  reaction  and  discouragement,  owing  to  financial  difficulties.  The  new 
policy  was  almost  immediately  abandoned  as  a  sad  failure.  The  Synod 
thus  estopped  from  evangelistic  activity,  expended  its  energy  for  the  next 
seven  years  in  the  discussion  of  constitutional  and  judicial  questions. 
These  discussions  may  have  had  their  value,  but  there  was  no  new  story 
to  tell   during   these   years   of   churches   established  in   the   53   counties 


Rev.  R.  F.  Campbell,  D.  D.  61 

reported  at  the  beginning  of  the  period  as  destitute,  or  nearly  destitute, 
of  the  Presbyterian  faith  and  order.  It  was  a  period  of  arrested  devel- 
opment. But,  as  we  shall  see,  the  arrest  of  the  Synod's  evangelistic  and 
vital  functions  was  only  temporary. 

4.  And  this  brings  us  to  the  period  of  vigorous  Growth  and  Prop- 
agation (1888-1913). 

In  these  years,  the  plant  having  reached  maturity,  not  only  blossoms 
and  bears  fruit,  but  scatters  its  seeds  to  germinate  far  and  wide. 

Once  more,  after  seven  years  of  drought,  the  languishing  tree  began 
to  scent  the  water,  and  to  bud  and  put  forth  boughs.  In  1888  the 
Synod  was  to  meet  in  Goldsboro.  The  first  sign  of  a  new  flow  of  sap 
in  the  drought-stricken  tree  was  manifested  in  the  call  for  a  convention 
to  be  held  the  day  before  the  meeting  of  Synod,  to  consider  the  inter- 
ests of  home  missions.  This  call  was  issued  by  the  Eev.  W.  E.  Mcll- 
waine,  and  was  signed  by  the  chairmen  of  the  home  mission  committees 
of  the  five  Presbyteries. 

When  the  Synod  convened  the  next  day  two  memorials  of  far-reaching 
influence  were  presented.  One  of  these  came  from  the  convention,  the 
other  from  the  Presbytery  of  Orange.  Both  memorials  called  for  a  more 
equal  distribution  of  the  territory  among  the  Presbyteries,  inasmuch 
as  Orange  had  twice  as  large  an  evangelistic  field  as  the  other  four 
Presbyteries  combined.  The  memorials  also  called  for  the  placing  of  at 
least  one  Synodical  evangelist  in  the  field,  in  accordance  with  the  plan 
inaugurated  and  abandoned  in  1881. 

The  debate  that  followed  was,  perhaps,  the  most  memorable  in  the 
history  of  the  Synod.  Certainly  the  most  quotable,  if  not  the  most  not- 
able, of  the  masterly  speeches  delivered  by  the  giants  of  those  days,  was 
that  of  the  Eev.  Dr.  Marable.  I  owe  to  Dr.  Peyton  II.  Hoge  the  follow- 
ing report  of  part  of  Dr.  Marable 's  speech :  Speaking  of  the  Synod,  he 
said  he  sometimes  wondered  whether  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  could  be 
saved  if  it  were  an  individual.  ' '  Not  the  members  of  the  Synod,  mind 
you,  but  the  Synod.  Can  anybody  be  saved  that  does  nothing  to  save 
his  fellowman?  But  in  all  my  knowledge  of  this  Synod,  I  have  never 
known  it  to  do  anything  to  save  one  human  soul.  Why  is  this?  Not 
because  the  members  are  not  alive  to  the  matter  of  saving  souls,  but 
because  the  Synod  has  formed  a  wrong  idea  of  its  functions.  It  has 
believed  itself  to  be  merely  a  body  of  review  and  control !  And  every 
year  a  hundred  and  fifty  ministers  and  elders  leave  their  homes  and 
their  work  merely  as  a  body  of  review  and  control!  To  review  what? 
To  review  the  records  of  five  Presbyteries.  To  cotrol  what?  To  con- 
trol Mecklenburg  Presbytery !  ' ' 

The  immediate  outcome  of  this  debate  was  the  adoption  of  the 
memorial  of  the  convention,  which  called  for  three  things:  (1)  The 
appointment  of  a  committee  to  consider  the  question  of  the  more  equal 
division  of  the  territory  of  Synod  among  the  Presbyteries;  (2)  The 
appointment  of  a  standing  order  to  consider  at  each  meeting  of  Synod 
the  subject  of  home  missions;  (3)  The  placing  of  at  least  one  Synodical 
evangelist  in  the  field. 

In  accordance  with  the  first  recommendation  of  this  report,  a  com- 
mittee was  appointed,  to  which  was  referred  the  memorial  from  Orange 


62     Last  Fifty  Years — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

Presbytery,  and  the  selection  of  the  evangelist  to  be  placed  in  the  field. 
Soon  after  the  adjournment  of  Synod  this  committee  met  in  Ealeigh  and 
elected,  subject  to  confirmation  by  the  Synod,  the  Eev.  W.  D.  Morton, 
D.  D.,  as  Synodieal  evangelist.  It  also  decided  to  recommend  the  erec- 
tion of  a  new  Presbytery  in  the  northeastern  part  of  the  State,  thus 
relieving  the  Presbytery  of  Orange  of  its  surplus  of  missionary  terri- 
tory. The  new  Presbytery  was  baptized  ' '  Albemarle ' '.  With  Wil- 
mington and  Mecklenburg,  it  formed  a  trio,  set  off  by  the  Synod  with 
the  express  purpose  of  reaching  the  more  destitute  parts  of  the  State 
with  the  gospel  as  preached  by  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Most  of  the 
counties  without  Presbyterian  churches  lay  within  these  Presbyteries,  and 
constituted  chiefly  the  Synod's  field  of  home  missions,  though  the  other 
Presbyteries,  especially  Concord  and  Orange,  still  had  within  their  bor- 
ders much  unevangelized  territory.  The  famous  debate  of  1888  settled 
the  question,  so  long  agitated,  as  to  the  right  and  the  duty  of  the  Synod 
to  undertake  the  work  of  evangelization. 

The  decision  reached  was  clearly  formulated  in  the  first  article  of  the 
report  adopted  in  1891:  "Synod  recognizes  that  upon  it  and  its  Pres- 
byteries is  laid  the  responsibility  for  the  evangelization  of  its  territory, 
so  far  as  it  can  be  done  by  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United 
States,  and  in  humble  reliance  upon  the  Read  of  the  Church  receives  this 
trust  from  His  hand  and  pledges  itself  to  its  faithful  prosecution." 

The  subsequent  history  of  the  Synod's  home  missions  to  the  present 
time  is  just  the  story  of  the  Synod's  earnest  efforts  to  discharge  this 
solemn  trust. 

Into  the  details  of  this  story  I  cannot  go,  for  the  time  would 
fail  me  to  tell  of  all  those  who  in  this  period  wrought  righteousness  and 
obtained  promises,  greeting  from  afar  the  long  results  of  time  and  toil. 
Nor  is  it  necessary  for  me  to  recount  either  their  names  or  their  deeds. 
Are  they  not  written  in  the  book  of  the  chronicles  of  D.  I.  Craig,  the 
scribe  ? 

When  Synod  comes  to  erect  its  hall  of  fame,  there  will  be  no  dearth 
of  names  to  be  commemorated.  I  can  mention  now,  and  only  mention, 
the  eight  superintendents  who  have  successfully  directed  the  work:  J.  W. 
Primrose,  Alexander  Spruut,  Egbert  W.  Smith,  William  Black,  A.  J. 
McKelway,  E.  E.  G-illespie,  E.  P.  Smith  and  the  present  faithful  and 
efficient  incumbent,  M.  MeG.  Shields.  These  have  been  the  worthy  cap- 
tains of  the  old  ship  of  Zion.  Of  the  stokers,  who  in  dust  and  darkness, 
sweat  and  grime,  have  fed  the  furnaces  and  generated  the  steam,  and 
who  should  be  held  in  everlasting  remembrance,  it  would  be  impossible 
to  speak  without  transcending  the  limits  of  this  address.  Their  record 
is  on  high. 

' '  A  tree  is  known  by  its  fruits. ' '  What  are  the  fruits  of  this  tree  ? 
There  are  now  eight  Presbyteries  in  the  Synod,  whereas  at  the  beginning 
of  the  half  century  we  have  had  under  consideration  there  were  only 
three.  And  all  five  of  the  later  ones  were  created  with  a  view  to  the 
more  vigorous  prosecution  of  home  missions. 

Since  1888,  when  the  Synod  recognized  its  responsibility  as  a  Synod 
for  the  evangelization  of  the  destitute  parts  of  the  State,  there  has  been 
a  marked  increase  in  fruitfulness.     For  the  forty  years  preceding  18S8 


Rev.  E.  F.  Campbell,  D.D.  63 

there  was  an  average  addition  of  three  hundred  communicants  yearly  to 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina;  for  the  twenty-five  years 
since  1888,  there  has  been  an  average  annual  increase  of  900.  A  quarter 
of  a  century  ago,  as  we  have  seen,  there  were  29  counties  in  which  there 
was  no  Presbyterian  Church.  Today  there  are  only  13.  There  were  24 
counties  with  only  one  Presbyterian  Church  each;  now  there  are  only  10. 
Seventy-nine  churches  and  one  hundred  and  seven  Sunday  schools  have 
been  organized  through  the  Synod 's  work.  Twenty-three  thousand  per- 
sons have  professed  conversion  under  the  preaching  of  the  Synod's 
evangelists,  and  thirteen  thousand  of  these  have  united  with  the  Pres- 
byterian church.  Twenty-five  years  ago  this  work  began  with  one  man, 
employed  by  the  Synod's  Committee;  today  there  are  thirty-seven. 

The  first  year  the  contributions  to  Synodical  missions  amounted  to 
$3,764;  last  year  to  $10,262. 

This  work,  so  far  from  hurting  the  work  done  by  the  Presbyteries,  has 
immensely  stimulated  that  work.  When  we  remember  that  in  1880  the 
amount  contributed  for  Presbyterian  missions  in  North  Carolina  was  less 
than  $2,300,  and  that  in  1912  it  was  over  $55,000,  we  begin  to  appre- 
ciate what  a  quickening  influence  has  come  out  of  the  principle  adopted 
after  a  long  struggle,  that  it  is  the  Synod 's  right  and  the  Synod 's  duty, 
as  a  Synod,  to  carry  on  the  work  of  evangelization.  The  tree  planted 
more  than  fifty  years  ago  has  weathered  the  storms  and  survived  the 
blights  that  Lave  come  upon  it,  and  has  blossomed  and  brought  forth 
fruit  abundantly. 

Not  only  so,  but  its  seeds  have  been  scattered  far  and  wide.  In 
1893,  when  the  General  Assembly  was  considering  the  re-organization  of 
its  plan  of  home  mission  work,  the  North  Carolina  plan  was  adopted,  and 
has  continued  in  operation  to  the  present  time.  Other  Synods,  too,  have 
taken  it  up.  And  that  not  only  in  our  branch  of  the  church.  The  plan 
has  been  worked  with  great  success  by  the  Northern  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  Synods  of  the  great  middle  west.  Certainly  this  tree  has  vindi- 
cated the  wisdom  of  those  who  planted  it  and  justified  the  labor  of 
those  who  have  nourished  it. 

And  now,  dear  brethren,  this  history  of  home  missions  in  North  Caro- 
lina, so  imperfectly  sketched,  lays  upon  us  of  this  generation  a  solemn 
responsibility.  This  work  is  not  only  a  heritage.  It  is  a  challenge. 
Other  men  labored,  and  we  have  entered  into  their  labors.  Should  we  not 
in  our  turn  send  up  the  prayer,  "Let  thy  work  appear  unto  thy  servants, 
and  thy  glory  unto  their  children"?  There  is  much  yet  to  be  done. 
There  are  still  13  counties  without  a  Presbyterian  church,  and  10  with 
only  one  each.  If  the  destitutions  were  being  reached  by  other  denomi- 
nations, there  might  be  some  excuse  for  lack  of  strenuous  efforts  on  our 
part.  But  it  is  estimated  that  there  are  at  least  a  million  people  in 
North  Carolina  who  are  not  communicants  of  any  church,  and  there  are 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  children  that  have  not  been  gathered  into 
Sunday  schools. 

There  is  abundant  room  for  the  further  growth  of  the  tree  planted 
by  our  fathers  and  watered  with  their  tears.  Shall  it  become  barren  and 
unfruitful  through  our  neglect?  Let  us  hear  the  word  of  the  Lord,  that 
a  keener  edge  may  be  given  to  our  hope  and  to  our  activity.     "I  will  be 


64     Last  Fifty  Years — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

as  the  dew  unto  Israel;  he  shall  blossom  as  the  lily,  and  cast  forth  his 
roots  as  Lebanon.  His  branches  shall  spread,  and  his  beauty  shall  be 
as  the  olive  tree,  and  his  smell  as  Lebanon.  They  that  dwell  under  his 
shadow  shall  return;  they  shall  revive  as  the  corn,  and  blossom  as  the 
vine;  the  scent  thereof  shall  be  as  the  wine  of  Lebanon.  From  me  is 
thy  fruit  found. ' ' 


65 


THE  LAST  FIFTY  YEARS— THE  PRESBYTERIAN 
CHURCH  AN  EVANGELISTIC  AGENCY 

REV.  J.  M.  ROSE,  D.  D. 
Laurinburg,  N.  C. 


The  time  allotted  me  allows  nothing  more  than  a  very  meagre  sketch 
of  the  work  done  by  our  Synod  in  telling  the  story  of  redeeming  love 
within  the  boundaries  of  North  Carolina. 

The  period  I  am  to  consider  dates  from  the  year  1863 — about  the 
middle  of  the  late  Civil  War.  While  appreciating  the  distinction  con- 
ferred upon  me,  the  more  carefully  I  have  studied  the  topic  assigned 
me,  the  more  deeply  impressed  I  have  been  with  the  thought  that  it 
would  have  been  wiser  to  have  selected  as  the  speaker  a  man  who  was 
an  active  member  of  the  Synod  during  the  decade  preceding  the  inaugu- 
ration of  our  great  Synodical  work  of  home  missions  in  1888. 

The  Presbyterian  Church  was  planted  in  North  Carolina  about  the 
year  1735  in  Duplin  County— shortly  afterwards  in  New  Hanover  and 
Cumberland  Counties — -by  Scotch  Presbyterians  from  the  Highlands  of 
Scotland.  About  the  same  time  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians  settled  in  the 
western  part  of  the  State.  There  was  a  rapid  increase  through  immi- 
gration, until  at  the  period  of  the  Eevolution  they  numbered  three  or 
four  thousand — about  one-seventy-fifth  of  the  population  of  the  State. 
It  would  seem  to  us  that  with  an  educated  ministry,  and  an  intelligent, 
influential  and  wealthy  constituency,  our  church  ought  to  have  been 
planted  in  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  State  from  the  seaboard  west- 
ward. But,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  in  1860  our  church  numbered  only  about 
92  ministers,  185  churches,  and  less  than  16,000  members,  whereas  when 
the  Synod  was  organized  in  1813  it  consisted  of  31  ministers,  85  churches 
and  4,000  members.  It  was  divided  into  three  Presbyteries — Orange, 
stretching  from  the  Yadkin  Eiver  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean;  Concord,  from 
the  Yadkin  west  to  the  utmost  limit  of  the  State,  and  Fayetteville, 
embracing  the  whole  southern  part  of  the  State,  from  the  Yadkin  to 
the  ocean.  In  more  than  one-half  of  the  state,  even  in  1863,  our  church 
was  almost  absolutely  unknown.  Many  grand  opportunities  for  expan- 
sion, development  and  growth  had  been  neglected  and  lost,  and  our 
brethren  of  other  churches  had  come  in  and  pre-occupied  territory  which 
our  fathers  might  have  won  for  our  chinch.  Our  fathers  regarded  the 
work  of  home  missions  as  exclusively  a  Presbyterial  function,  and  the 
time  of  the  Synod,  at  its  annual  session,  was  devoted  to  the  discussion 
of  great  questions  pertaining  to  the  educational  interests  of  the  State 
and  the  church,  and   the   spread  of   the   Gospel  in  the  regions  beyond. 

During  the  war  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  gained 
only  eight  ministers  and  five  churches,  and  lost  more  than  two  thousand 
communicants — the  latter  consisting  in  large  degree  of  our  young  men, 


66     Last  Fifty  Years — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

in  the  prime  of  life,  the  hope  of  the  church,  who  had  fallen  in  battle  or 
had  died  in  prison,  or  from  disease  and  exposure.  So  that  in  1875,  ten 
years  after  the  war,  after  all  the  horrible  experiences  of  the  Eecon- 
struction  Era,  we  had  gained  since  1860  only  thirteen  ministers,  eight 
churches  and  six  hundred  members. 

For  the  first  twenty-five  years  from  1863  the  only  evangelistic  work 
done  was  done  by  the  Presbyteries.  In  1863  Orange  Presbytery  had  one 
evangelist  and  six  missionaries  in  its  extended  territory,  Concord  one 
evangelist  and  five  missionaries,  Fayetteville  five  missionaries  and  no 
evangelist.  In  1867  there  were  only  five  home  missionaries  regularly 
employed  in  the  whole  Synod.  But  a  deep  sense  of  responsibility  was 
being  felt,  and  a  widespread  recognition  of  the  obligation  to  give  the 
Gospel  to  our  home  people;  and  the  Synod  issued  an  address  to  the 
churches,  full  of  affectionate  counsel  and  admonition,  calling  the  people 
to  prayer,  begging  them  to  arise  and  build  the  waste  places,  and  entreat- 
ing them  to  undertake  the  support  of  evangelists  and  missionaries. 

Thenceforward  a  new  spirit  of  activity  began  to  show  itself,  contri- 
butions increased,  and  the  chief  theme  of  discussions  in  the  Presbyteries 
was  the  need  of  a  larger  measure  of  earnest  evangelistic  work  in  our 
bounds.  One  of  the  immediate  results  was  the  organization  of  Wil- 
mington Presbytery  in  1S6S — the  motive  actuating  it  being  the  evangeli- 
zation of  the  southern  part  of  eastern  North  Carolina— followed  the  next 
year,  1869,  by  the  formation  of  Mecklenburg  Presbytery  for  more 
efficient  work  in  the  west.  The  organization  of  these  two  Presbyteries — 
one  in  the  east  and  the  other  in  the  west — was  a  forward  movement  which 
tended  greatly  to  further  the  interest  of  evangelization  in  the  State. 
That  same  year,  1869,  the  Synod  issued  an  address  to  the  churches — 
printed  and  widely  distributed- — in  which  it  declared  the  necessity  of 
having  at  least  eight  or  ten  evangelists  to  carry  the  banner  of  the  cross 
outside  of  all  our  churches  into  the  extended  territory  in  eastern  and 
western  North  Carolina  destitute  of  Presbyterian  churches. 

' '  This  is  the  great  and  crying  want  of  the  church  in  this  Synod 
today, ' '  it  proclaimed.  Our  people  began  to  realize  as  never  before  the 
great  need  of  evangelization.  The  number  of  home  missionaries  and 
evangelists  rapidly  increased  in  all  the  Presbyteries,  contributions  for 
their  support  were  more  readily  obtained,  and  a  great  deal  of  aggressive 
and  effective  work  was  done  during  the  next  ten  or  fifteen  years.  The 
plan,  however,  was  faulty,  the  means  at  hand  were  wholly  inadequate,  the 
destitutions  were  too  great,  the  territory  to  be  reached  far  too  large,  so 
long  as  the  task  was  regarded  as  exclusively  the  work  of  each  individual 
Presbytery  to  look  after  its  own  territory.  There  was  no  possibility  of 
doing  the  work  effectively  until  the  Synodical  movement  was  inaugurated 
in  1888. 

During  these  first  twenty-five  years,  notwithstanding  the  inadequate 
methods  of  evangelization  employed,  and  the  almost  unspeakable  diffi- 
culties encountered,  our  Presbyteries  increased  in  number  from  three  to 
five,  the  number  of  ministers  increased  from  ninety  odd  to  one  hundred 
and  twenty-two,  the  number  of  churches  from  two  hundred  and  ten  to 
two  hundred  and  sixty-two,  the  number  of  communicants  from  ten 
thousand  to  nearly  twenty-three  thousand. 


Eev.  J.  M.  Rose,  D.  I).  67 

I  have  not  time  to  trace  the  history  of  the  long  contest  lasting  about 
ten  years,  which  resulted  finally  in  the  adoption  of  our  scheme  of 
Synodical  home  missions,  or  to  allude  to  the  great  debates  which  occurred 
year  after  year  upon  the  questions  involved,  or  to  speak  of  the  men  who 
were  active  in  achieving  the  result  named — the  inauguration  of  a  new 
plan  for  the  planting  of  our  church  in  every  section  of  the  State.  These 
hindering  questions  were  largely  constitutional — questions  relating  to  the 
nature,  warrant  and  function  of  the  evangelist — questions  pertaining  to 
the  powers  of  the  Synod  and  the  rights  of  the  Presbyteries,  etc.,  nor  shall 
I  speak  of  the  great  convention  held  in  Goldsboro,  in  1888,  the  day 
preceding  the  meeting  of  the  Synod,  or  of  the  men  by  whom  that  con- 
vention was  called,  and  who  determined  its  policy.  Suffice  it  to  say 
that  the  Synod  of  1888,  at  Goldsboro,  marks  a  new  era  in  the  history  of 
Presbyterianism  in  North  Carolina.  The  same  old  questions  of  the  con- 
stitutionality of  Synodical  evangelists,  the  right  of  the  Synod  to  elect 
evangelists,  and  to  appoint  an  evangelistic  committee  with  power  to  act 
' '  had  to  be  met,  and  were  met  in  a  masterly  debate ' '. 

The  battle  was  fought  and  the  victory  won.  The  future  policy 
of  the  Synod  was  definitely  fixed.  That  policy  was  defined  in  these 
words,  ' '  Synod  recognizes  that  upon  it  and  its  Presbyteries  is  laid 
the  responsibility  for  the  evangelization  of  its  territory,  so  far  as  it 
can  be  done  by  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States,  and  in 
humble  reliance  upon  the  Head  of  the  Church  receives  this  trust  from 
His  hand  and  pledges  itself  to  its  faithful  prosecution. ' ' 

Animated  in  part  by  the  splendid  work  done  by  the  Synod  of  Ken- 
tucky, the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  inaugurated  its  new  scheme.  In  a 
very  few  months  Dr.  W.  D.  Morton,  its  first  general  evangelist,  entered 
upon  his  work  in  June,  '89.  It  was  a  happy  selection.  It  gave  uni- 
versal satisfaction.  His  labors  were  wonderfully  blessed  and  crowned 
with  marvelous  success. 

He  continued  in  this  office  till  October,  1891,  two  and  one-half  years. 
During  this  period  he  held  1291  services,  witnessed  806  confessions,  and 
saw  578  persons  added  to  the  Presbyterian  Church.  At  the  Synod  in 
1889  Dr.  E.  W.  Smith  was  unanimously  elected  general  evangelist,  in 
addition  to  Dr.  Morton,  and  the  special  work  of  raising  funds  for  placing 
more  laborers  in  the  field  assigned  to  him.  For  this  important  work 
he  exhibited  marvelous  ability  and  had  unprecedented  success.  By  his 
persuasive  and  burning  eloquence  he  excited  interest  and  enthusiasm 
throughout  the  Synod. 

I  mention  personally  these  two  men  because  of  their  unique  rela- 
tion to  the  work  at  its  beginning.  In  1890  the  Synod  had  in  its  employ 
as  evangelists  these  two  men;  in  '95  it  had  nineteen  men  doing  its  work 
either  as  general  or  district  evangelist.  In  1900  it  had  sixteen;  in  1905 
it  had  twenty-five  men;  in  1910  it  had  thirty;  in  1912  it  had  thirty-four. 
The  Synod's  committee  expends  now  from  ten  to  twelve  thousand  dol- 
lars annually  in  its  work.  It  has  planted  the  Presbyterian  churches  in 
fifteen  counties  where  there  were  none  before.  Its  workers  have  organ- 
ized seventy-nine  new  churches,  one  hundred  and  seven  new  Sunday 
schools.  Its  evangelists  have  witnessed  some  23,000  professions  of  faith, 
and  received  into  the  church  upwards  of  13,000  people.     The  Synod  aids 


68     Last  Fifty  Tears — Presbyterian  Church  an  Evangelistic  Agency 

in   the   support  of  86   feeble  churches,   and  supplies  with  preaching   76 
mission  points. 

During  the  progress  of  this  work,  inaugurated  by  the  Synod,  three  new 
Presbyteries  have  been  founded — Albemarle  in  the  east,  Asheville  and 
King 's  Mountain  in  the  west.  In  each  case  the  organization  was  effected 
for  the  better  prosecution  of  the  home  mission  work  of  the  Synod. 

This  Synodieal  work  has  directly  resulted  in  the  establishment  of 
numerous  mission  schools,  for  both  sexes — schools  which  have  offered 
educational  advantages  to  thousands  of  boys  and  girls  who  would  not 
have  otherwise  enjoyed  them,  and  in  return  have  given  to  the  church 
scores  of  young  men  and  young  women,  devoted  followers  of  Christ,  who 
have  pledged  their  lives  to  the  upbuilding  of  His  kingdom — numbers  of 
them  having  entered  or  preparing  to  enter  the  gospel  ministry.  Some 
of  these  schools  should  be  mentioned  by  name :  Lees-McEae  at  Banner 
Elk,  Plum  Tree  in  Mitchell,  Elise  at  Hemp  in  Moore  County,  the  Glade 
Valley,  the  Maxwell  Memorial  School  at  Canton,  Crabtree;  Dillsboro, 
Bobinsville,  Barnardsville,  etc.,  all  of  them  flourisnmg  and  doing  a 
splendid  work  in  promoting  the  growth  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 

In  1888  there  were  five  Presbyteries,  now  there  are  eight.     In 
there  were  122  ministers  in  the  Synod,  now  there  are  230  odd.     In 
there  were  262  churches  in  the  Synod,  now  there  are  489  or  more.     In 
1888  we  had  22,553  members,  now  we  have  nearly  50,000. 

In  1888  there  were  27  counties  in  North  Carolina  without  a  Presby- 
terian Church;  now  the  number  is  reduced  more  than  one-half. 

All  of  this  work  and  its  splendid  results  are  not  due  directly  to  the 
Synod's  work,  but  indirectly  they  are. 

Zeal  and  enthusiasm  in  the  conduct  of  Presbyterial  home  mission 
work  have  generally  kept  pace  with  the  splendid  work  done  by  the 
Synod.  In  1888  there  were  6  Presbyterial  evangelists  in  the  bounds  of 
the  Synod,  giving  their  whole  time  to  the  work  entrusted  to  them.  I 
cannot  give  the  number  accurately  now,  but  in  1907  there  were  21.  In 
addition  to  those  who  are  commissioned  to  preach,  there  is  a  great  host 
of  teachers,  male  and  female,  engaged  in  doing  evangelistic  work  and 
speeding  the  progress  of  the  kingdom. 

It  is  not  my  mission  today,  as  I  take  it,  to  speak  of  men,  the  work- 
ers, but  rather  of  the  work.  However,  it  would  not  be  right  to  con- 
clude this  sketch  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  as  an  evangelistic  agency, 
without  making  at  least  a  bare  mention  of  a  few  names  to  whom  the 
Synod  of  North  Carolina  owes  a  debt  which  it  can  never  pay.  I  men- 
tion first  a  few  to  whom  chiefly  we  are  indebted  for  the  great  movement 
known  as  Synodieal  home  missions:  Drs.  Marable,  Eumple,  H.  G.  Hill 
(still  the  valiant  "defender  of  the  faith "),  Primrose,  J.  C.  Alexander, 
W.  E.  Mcllwaine,  D.  E.  Jordan,  L.  McKinnon,  D.  I.  Craig,  F.  H.  John- 
son, P.  II.  Hoge,  and  others. 

Euling  elders:  Allen,  B.  F.  Hall,  J.  T.  Hall,  J.  M.  Eogers,  Dr. 
McNeill,  Belk,  and  others  too  numerous  to  mention. 

The  honorable  list  of  superintendents:  Alexander  Sprunt,  E.  W. 
Smith,  Wm.  Black,  McKelway,  Eugene  Gillespie,  E.  P.  Smith,  and  last 
but  not  least,  M.  McG.  Shields. 


Rev.  J.  M.  Rose,  D.  D.  69 

The  name  of  Wm.  Black  should  be  especially  emphasized.  In  the  last 
19  years  he  has  perhaps  done  more  to  evangelize  North  Carolina  than 
any  man  who  ever  lived  in  the  State.  He  has  traveled  more  hundreds  of 
miles,  held  more  religious  services,  preached  the  Gospel  to  more  people, 
and  witnessed  more  confessiorjs  of  Christ  than  any  other  living  man.  The 
loving  benediction  of  thousands  abides  upon  him. 

These  past  twenty-five  years  especially  have  witnessed  a  great  work 
done;  more  ought  to  have  been  done;  more  might  have  been  done;  much 
more  remains  to  be  done.  Splendid  opportunities  await  us  and  hundreds 
of  doors  are  flung  wide  open.  May  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  give  to 
our  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  grace  to  enter  these  open 
doors.     Let  us  speed  on  our  work  without  tarrying. 

"MOVE    TO    THE    FOEE 

"Move  to  the  Fore, 
Not  yours  to  shrink,  as  the  feeble  ones  may, 
Men  whom  God  hath  made  fit  for  the  fray; 
Not  yours  to  parley  and  quibble  and  shirk; 
HI  for  the  world  if  ye  do  not  God's  work, 
Move  to  the  Fore. 

' '  Move  to  the  Fore, 
God  himself  waits  and  must  wait  till  thou  come; 
Men  are  God's  prophets,  though  ages  be  dumb. 
Halts  the  Christ  Kingdom  with  conquest  so  near? 
Thou  art  the  cause,  then,  thou  man  at  the  rear, 
Move  to  the  Fore." 


70 


PRESBYTERIANS  IN  EDUCATIONAL  WORK  IN 
NORTH  CAROLINA  SINCE  1813 


BY   C.    ALPHONSO    SMITH 
Poe  Professor  of  English  in  the  University  of  Virginia 


No  one  can  read  the  history  of  North  Carolina  without  conceding  to 
Presbyterians  both  priority  and  primacy  in  education.  Indeed  those 
who  are  not  Presbyterians  have  paid  tribute  to  Presbyterian  influence 
in  education  more  unreservedly  than  have  Presbyterians  themselves.  Dr. 
Kemp  P.  Battle*,  a  distinguished  Episcopalian,  says  that  the  Scotch- 
Irish,  another  name  for  Presbyterians,  gave  to  North  Carolina  not 
only  many  of  its  leaders  in  peace  and  war — the  Grahams  and  Jacksons 
and  Johnstons  and  Brevards  and  Alexanders  and  Mebanes  and  hosts  of 
others,  ' '  but,  above  all,  most  of  its  faithful  and  zealous  instructors  of 
youth,  such  as  Dr.  David  Caldwell,  of  Guilford,  and  Dr.  Joseph  Caldwell, 
of  the  University,  Dr.  David  Ker**  and  Mr.  Charles  Wilson  Harris t, 
the  first  professors  in  the  University,  and  that  progenitor  of  a  line  of 
able  and  cultured  teachers  and  founder  of  a  school  eminent  for  nearly 
a  century  for  its  widespread  and  multiform  usefulness,  William  Bing- 
ham J,  the  first". 

Dr.  Charles  Lee  Raper§,  a  Methodist,  and  dean  of  the  graduate 
department  in  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  after  mentioning  such 
Presbyterian  schools  and  churches  as  Sugar  Creek,  Poplar  Tent,  Centre, 
Bethany,  Buffalo,  Thyatira,  Grove,  Wilmington,  and  the  schools  .and 
churches  of  Orange  and  Granville  Counties  presided  over  by  the  famous 
Henry  Patillo,  declares  that  ' '  the  Presbyterians  have  been  more 
thoroughly  devoted  to  education  than  any  other  denomination.  It  has 
meant  life  as  well  as  light  to  them;  it  has  made  them  independent  and 


*  "History  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina",    (1907),  I,  38. 

**  Dr.  David  Ker  (1758-1805)  was  not  only  the  first  professor  to  be  called  to 
the  University  but  as  "presiding  professor"  he  was  the  first  executive  or  presi- 
dent.   He  had  been  a  Presbyterian  preacher  and  teacher  in  Fayetteville. 

t  Mr.  Charles  Wilson  Harris  (died  1804),  professor  of  mathematics  at  the 
University,  was  the  second  professor  called  to  the  new  institution.  He  organized 
the  first  literary  society  at  the  University,  was  for  a  time  "presiding  professor", 
and  suggested  the  name  of  his  friend  and  fellow-Princetonian,  Joseph  Caldwell, 
to  succeed  himself  in  the  chair  of  mathematics. 

t  He  had  preached  and  taught  in  Wilmington  before  coming  to  the  University 
as  professor  of  Latin  in  1801.  He  resigned  in  1805  to  become  the  founder  of 
Bingham  School.  Of  his  son,  William  James  Bingham  (1802-1866),  father  of  Wil- 
liam Bingham,  the  author,  and  of  Major  Robert  Bingham,  the  present  dis- 
tinguished principal  of  Bingham  School,  Mr.  Walter  P.  Williamson  says  (in 
"Our  Living  and  Our  Dead",  II,  p.  372)  :  "I  venture  to  say  he  was  the  means 
of  putting  more  teachers  upon  the  rostrum,  more  professional  men  into  the 
various  professions,  more  preachers  in  the  pulpit,  and  more  missionaries  into 
the  field  than  any  ten  other  men  in  the   State." 

§  "The  Church  and  Private   Schools  of  North  Carolina",    (1898),  p.  31. 


C.  Alphonso  Smith  71 

patriotic,  strong  and  noble.  They  are  really  our  first  teachers,  and  dur- 
ing the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  they  were  well-nigh  our 
only  ones. "  "In  North  Carolina,  as  in  several  other  States, ' '  says 
Dr.  Charles  Lee  Smith*,  a  Baptist,  and  the  only  historian  of  education 
in  the  State,  "the  higher  education  owes  its  first  impulse  to  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  and  Princeton  College.  To  the  Scotch-Irish  Presby- 
terians occupying  central  and  piedmont  Carolina  is  due  the  lasting 
honor  of  having  established  the  first  academies  in  the  Province,  and  it 
is  said  that  it  was  through  their  influence  that  the  clause  providing  for 
a  university  was  inserted  in  the  initial  Constitution  of  the  State." 

No  further  testimony  is  needed  to  show  that  in  educational  work  in 
the  State  the  Presbyterian  Church  has  been  first  and  foremost  t.  It 
shall  be  my  purpose  not  to  trace  the  history  of  Presbyterian  schools,  not 
to  speak  of  what  the  Synod  as  a  Synod  has  done,  but  to  put  the  emphasis 
on  a  few  great  Presbyterian  leaders.  There  are  six  names  that  seem 
to  me  both  typical  and  representative.  I  shall  try  to  individualize  these 
and  to  indicate  the  distinctive  achievement  of  each.  These  names,  if  I 
understand  their  significance,  not  only  link  the  years  of  the  century 
into  oneness  of  aim  and  achievement  but  project  the  light  of  a  larger 
promise  into  the  new  century  upon  which  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina 
today  enters. 

I.     David  Caldwell   (1725-1824) 

There  is  no  difficulty  in  selecting  our  first  most  representative  figure, 
for  when  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was  formed  a  hundred  years  ago 
the  most  famous  educator  in  the  South  was  David  Caldwell.  He  was 
eighty-eight  years  old  at  this  time  and  had  only  recently  begun  to  show 
the  physical  marks  of  age.  His  mind,  however,  was  still  vigorous,  his 
memory  tenacious,  his  humor  unfailing,  his  will  unbroken,  and  his 
appearance  majestic.  Only  a  few  months  before,  when  Virginia  had 
been  threatened  by  a  British  invasion  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  volunteers 
were  called  for  from  Guilford  County,  Dr.  Caldwell  had  been  helped  up 
the  steps  of  the  old  courthouse  to  make  the  appeal.  His  text  was: 
"He  that  hath  no  sword,  let  him  sell  his  garment  and  buy  one."  So 
ardent  was  the  old  Dominie 's  patriotism  and  so  irresistible  his  message 
that  not  only  did  more  than  the  required  number  of  Guilford  men  start 
forthwith  for  Virginia,  but  among  them  a  young  Quaker  found  himself. 
Bidding  defiance  to  all  inherited  and  acquired  convictions,  this  young  man 
served  faithfully  in  the  ranks  and  returned  to  attest  not  so  much  the  will- 
ingness of  one  Southern  State  to  help  another  as  the  impossibility  of 
standing  unmoved  before  David  Caldwell  when  David  Caldwell  was 
aflame  with  a  great  theme. 

At  this  time,  however,  Dr.  Caldwell  was  already  looked  upon  as 
belonging  more  to  the  past  than  to  the  present.     But  what  a  past  it  had 


*  "The  History   of  Education  in  North  Carolina",    (1888),   pp.   23,   52. 

t  In  1810  the  University  of  North  Carolina  conferred  three  D.  D.'s  and  five 
M.  A.'s.  Each  one  of  the  eight  recipients  was  a  Presbyterian  preacher  who 
taught  as  well  as  preached  in  central  or  piedmont  Carolina.  It  looked  very 
much  like  a  called  meeting  of  Orange  Presbytery.  See  Battle's  "History  of  the 
University  of  North  Carolina".  I,   186. 


72  Presbyterians  in  Educational  Work  in  North  Carolina 

been !  This  man 's  life  had  spanned  the  most  dramatic  transition  of 
modern  history.  He  was  born  when  Peter  the  Great,  of  Buss: a,  lay 
dying.  He  had  lived  under  George  I,  George  II,  George  III,  Washington, 
Adams,  Jefferson,  and  Madison.  He  was  to  die  under  the  presidency  of 
Monroe.  He  had  corresponded  since  early  manhood  with  his  friend,  the 
great  Dr.  Benjamin  Eush,  of  Philadelphia,  "the  Sydenham  of  Amer- 
ica". Pastor  of  Alamance  and  Buffalo  Churches  since  1768,  his  fame  as 
preacher,  teacher,  physician  and  patriot  far  transcended  State  lines. 
Students  had  come  to  him  from  every  section  of  the  country  south  of  the 
Potomac.  From  his  log  school-room,  which  was  also  his  home,  there 
had  gone  forth  five  governors  and  more  than  fifty  ministers.  He  had 
been  a  member  of  the  State  Constitutional  Convention  of  1788,  and 
was  the  first  to  whom  the  presidency  of  the  new  university  had  been 
offered.  He  was  more  familiar  with  the  earlier  and  later  stages  of  the 
Eevolutionary  War  in  North  Carolina  than  any  other  man,  living  or  dead. 
He  had  been  with  the  members  of  his  two  congregations  when  they 
fought  at  Alamance  and  at  Guilford  Court  House.  A  price  had  been 
set  upon  his  head.  He  had  reasoned  with  Governor  Tryon,  argued  with 
Cornwallis,  and  counseled  with  General  Greene. 

The  greatest  personal  loss  that  had  come  to  him  was  in  the  wanton 
and  deliberate  burning  of  his  books,  letters,  and  manuscripts  of  every 
kind.  His  family  was  compelled  to  stand  idly  by  and  see  armful  after 
armful  of  these  memorials  of  an  heroic  past  dumped  by  the  British  into 
the  flaming  oven  in  the  Doctor's  back  yard.  Though  his  books  were 
his  tools,  Dr.  Caldwell  was  often  heard  to  say  that  he  regretted  most 
of  all  the  loss  of  his  private  papers.  Had  these  been  preserved,  I 
believe  that  Dr.  Caldwell's  name  would  appear  in  every  history  of  the 
American  Bevolution,  while  now  it  appears  in  none,  and  that  the  part 
played  by  North  Carolinians  in  that  great  struggle  would  never  have 
been  subject  to  either  cavil  or  question. 

All  honor  to  your  second  pastor,  men  of  Alamance  and  Buffalo,  Dr. 
Eli  W.  Caruthers.  Had  he  not  written  the  life  of  Dr.  Caldwell,  the  name 
of  the  great  educator  would  today  be  but  a  rumor.  Dr.  Caruthers  could 
not,  however,  in  1842,  make  amends  for  British  barbarism  in  1781,  but 
he  did  what  he  could.  Like  Walter  Scott 's  Old  Mortality,  who  found 
pleasure  in  cleansing  the  gravestones  of  the  martyred  Covenanters,  Dr. 
Caruthers  has  lovingly  removed  the  mosses  and  lichens  from  the  grave 
of  a  great  man.  He  has  thus  rescued  and  restored  the  name  and  fame  of 
one  who  would  otherwise  have  been  but  a  drifting  tradition. 

A  teacher's  eminence  may  be  measured  in  part  by  the  eminence 
of  his  contemporaries;  his  services,  by  the  achievements  of  his  pupils. 
On  both  counts  Dr.  Caldwell's  fame  is  enhanced.  He  had  as  contempor- 
aries such  Presbyterian  teachers  as  Dr.  John  Makemie  Wilson  (1769- 
1831)  and  Dr.  James  Hall  (1744-1826).  Both  had  gone  with  him  in 
1810  to  receive  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  from  the  University  of 
North  Carolina.  Dr.  Wilson,  a  playmate  of  Andrew  Jackson,  had  opened 
a  classical  academy  one  year  before  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was 
formed  and  in  twelve  years  he  had  trained  twenty-five  Presbyterian 
ministers.  Dr.  Hall,  a  scientist,  theologian,  educator,  scholar  and 
soldier,  reminds  one  of  ' '  the  spacious  times  of  Great  Elizabeth ' ',  when 


C.   Alphonso   Smith  73 

men,  uncertain  whether  the  pen  was  really  mightier  than  the  sword,  com- 
promised by  handling  both  with  equal  skill.  A  special  interest  attaches 
to  this  warrior-preacher  at  our  centennial  celebration  because  as  a 
delegate  from  Orange  Presbytery  he  had  served  as  Moderator  of  the 
General  Assembly  in  Philadelphia  and  because  he  was  the  Moderator 
of  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  when  it  met  for  the  last  time  as  a  com- 
bined Synod  in  1812. 

Among  Dr.  Caldwell's  graduates  we  shall  mention  only  three,  but 
each  added  a  distinct  chapter  to  educational  achievement  in  North  Caro- 
lina. Eev.  Samuel  E.  McCorkle,  D.  D.,  (1746-1811),  was  offered  the 
first  professorship  in  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  but  declined.  He 
was  the  orator  of  the  day  on  that  famous  October  12,  1793,  when  the 
cornerstone  of  the  Old  East  was  laid.  The  first  graduating  class  at  the 
University  numbered  seven,  of  whom  six  had  been  pupils  of  Dr.  McCorkle. 
In  the  first  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  new  University  he  was  the  only 
preacher  and  the  only  teacher.  He  was  the  author  of  the  by-laws  of 
the  University,  which  contained  also  courses  of  study  for  all  the  classes; 
and  his  famous  academy,  Zion-Parnassus,  at  Thyatira,  six  miles  west  of 
Salisbury,  had  the  first  normal  school  in  America.  Archibald  D.  Mur- 
phey  (1777-1832),  another  pupil,  said  in  1827:  "The  usefulness  of 
Dr.  Caldwell  to  the  literature  of  North  Carolina  will  never  be  sufficiently 
appreciated. ' '  The  same  has  often  been  said  of  Murphey  himself. 
' '  When  our  history  is  written, ' '  says  W.  J.  Peele*,  ' '  if  greatness  is 
measured  by  the  public  benefit  it  confers,  perhaps  Macon,  Murphey  and 
Vance  will  stand  together  as  the  three  greatest  men  the  State  has  yet 
produced."  In  1817,  as  chairman  of  the  committee  appointed  by  the 
preceding  legislature,  Mr.  Murphey  filed  his  famous  report  on  education. 
"I  doubt  if  a  more  able  and  scholarly  report,"  says  James  Y.  Joyner, 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  ' '  was  ever  filed  by  any  man  on 
any  subject  in  any  North  Carolina  legislature. ' '  John  Motley  More- 
head  (1796-1866),  twice  governor  of  North  Carolina,  attended  Dr.  Cald- 
well's school  when  his  teacher  was  ninety  years  old,  but  when  his  ability 
as  an  educator  and  his  range  as  a  scholar  were,  in  Governor  Morehead's 
opinion,  worthy  of  all  praise.  John  Motley  Morehead  became  distinct- 
ively our  greatest  industrial  governor,  but  he  made  educational  history 
when  he  founded  in  Greensboro  the  famous  Edgeworth  Female  Semi- 
nary, the  only  school  for  women  in  the  State  founded  and  owned  by  an 
individual.  It  lasted  from  1840  to  1871  and  its  grateful  and  loyal 
alumnae  may  still  be  found  in  every  Southern  State. 

Though  dead  nearly  a  hundred  years,  Dr.  Caldwell  reminds  us  bet- 
ter than  any  other  teacher  in  our  history  that  education  means  the 
development  of  personality  through  contact  with  personality.  His  stu- 
dents did  not  go  to  a  library,  a  laboratory,  a  faculty,  or  even  a  school 
or  college.  They  went  to  David  Caldwell.  He  died  just  as  the  forces 
that  tend  to  institutionalize  and  impersonalize  education  were  girding 
themselves  for  the  century-long  contest.  They  are  in  the  saddle  today, 
but  the  time  is  coming  when  the  voice  of  the  old  Dominie,  like  the  voice 
of  Johnny  Armstrong  in  the  old  ballad,  will  be  heard  saying: 


'Lives  of  Distinguished   North  Carolinians",    (1898),   p.   125. 


74  Presbyterians  in  Educational  Work  in  North  Carolina 

' '  Fight  on,  my  merry  men  all, 

And  see  that  none  of  you  be  ta'en, 
For  I  will  stand  by  and  bleed  but  awhile, 
And  then  will  I  come  and  fight  again. ' ' 

II.     Joseph  Caldwell  (1773-1835) 

When  David  Caldwell  died  in  1824  the  sceptre  passed  to  Joseph 
Caldwell,  first  president  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina.  Though 
not  related  one  to  the  other,  the  two  men  had  much  in  common.  Both 
were  of  Scotch-Irish  descent,  the  .elder  from  Lancaster  County,  Penn- 
sylvania, the  younger  from  New  Jersey;  both  were  graduates  of  Prince- 
ton ;  both  were  preachers  as  well  as  teachers ;  both  were  students  of 
science  as  well  as  of  the  classics;  both  were  men  of  affairs  as  well  as  of 
books;  both  fought  persistently  and  successfully  the  forces  of  French 
infidelity  that  were  making  rapid  headway  in  the  new  republic ;  and  both 
lived  long  enough  to  glimpse  the  after-glow  of  their  own  widening  fame. 
The  difference  between  them  was  one  chiefly  of  temperament.  There 
was  a  sweetness,  a  balance,  a  poise  and  patience  about  David  Cald- 
well which,  if  not  conspicuously  lacking,  were  not  distinctively  present, 
in  the  character  of  Joseph  Caldwell.  The  first  president  drove  from 
Princeton  to  Chapel  Hill  in  a  sulky,  arriving  in  time  to  take  the  chair 
of  mathematics  at  the  beginning  of  the  session  of  1796.  He  was  twenty- 
three  years  old  and  the  University  one  year  old. 

From  the  opening  of  the  University  until  the  enforced  resignation 
of  President  David  Lowry  Swain  in  Eeconstruction  times,  the  University 
was  presided  over  continuously  by  Presbyterians.  For  the  first  nine 
years  of  its  existence  (1795-1804)  there  was  no  president  but  a  presiding 
professor.  The  two  presiding  professors,  before  Dr.  Caldwell  became 
president  in  1804,  had  been  Dr.  David  Ker  and  Mr.  Charles  Wilson 
Harris,  both  Presbyterians.  Of  his  Professor  of  Latin,  William  Bing- 
ham, a  Scotch-Irishman  of  Ulster,  and  an  honor  graduate  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Glasgow,  Dr.  Caldwell  afterwards  wrote :  ' '  Whoever  shall 
have  occasion  to  be  acquainted  with  this  man  shall  find  him  to  be  one  of 
those  whom  the  great  poet  of  England  has  denominated  to  be  among  'the 
noblest  works  of  God'." 

Joseph  Caldwell  found  himself,  then,  among  congenial  colleagues.  As 
first  president  of  the  oldest  State  University  in  America  he  occupied  a 
position  of  rare  opportunity  but  of  almost  unexampled  difficulty.  There 
was  no  precedent  to  follow  and  no  one  to  whom  he  could  turn  for 
assured  guidance  in  that  dim  neutral  belt  of  authority  that  lay  between 
the  faculty  on  the  one  hand,  the  Board  of  Trustees  and  the  Legislature 
on  the  other.  He  resigned  once  with  the  intention  of  devoting  himself 
exclusively  to  the  study  of  higher  mathematics,  his  favorite  field;  but 
at  the  end  of  three  years  he  was  unanimously  re-elected  to  his  old  posi- 
tion, which  he  held  till  his  death  in  1835.  During  these  years  the  Uni- 
versity grew  rapidly  in  renown,  in  resources,  in  fruitful  scholarship,  and 
in  public  service.     The  man  and  the  place  had  met. 

Dr.  Caldwell  was  not  only  a  scholar  and  administrator ;  he  was  a 
great    citizen.     He    advocated    so    ably   the    building    of    railroads    that 


C.  Alphonso   Smith  75 

he  was  called  the  father  of  internal  improvements.  ' '  So  long, ' '  said 
Paul  C.  Cameron,  "as  the  great  trunk  line  railroad  from  Morehead  City 
shall  increase  the  wealth  and  commerce  of  the  State,  the  name  of  Cald- 
well will  be  remembered  as  its  first  projector  in  the  letters  of  '  Carlton '. ' ' 
He  was  appointed  scientific  expert  to  run  the  boundary  line  between 
North  and  South  Carolina  in  1813.  He  erected  a  building  in  which  to 
use  the  costly  astronomical  instruments  bought  by  him  in  London,  and 
thus  inaugurated  the  first  college  observatory  in  the  United  States.  He 
was  so  ardent  an  advocate  of  common  schools  and  academies  that  the 
new  Presbyterian  institute  at  Greensboro,  established  a  year  after  his 
death,  was  promptly  named  for  him.  Among  its  earliest  teachers  were 
Dr.  Alexander  Wilson,  Mr.  Silas  C.  Lindsay,  and  Rev.  John  A.  Gretter. 
' '  This  trio, ' '  said  Dr.  Charles  Phillips,  ' '  taught  a  school  of  the  highest 
pretensions  ever  known  in  North  Carolina.  Its  students  joined  the 
junior  class  in  the  University. ' '  Six  years  after  Dr.  Caldwell 's  death 
his  name  was  given  to  Caldwell  County,  the  first  county  in  the  State  to 
honor  the  name  of  a  teacher. 

Near  the  top  of  the  monument  erected  on  the  campus  of  the  Univer- 
sity ' '  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  the  Governor  of  North 
Carolina,  and  other  alumni"  to  the  memory  of  Dr.  Caldwell  may  be 
seen  a  railroad  wheel,  an  engineer's  transit,  and  the  Bible.  The  union 
of  these  symbols,  rather  than  the  symbols  themselves,  together  with  the 
inscription  on  the  south  face — ' '  He  was  an  early,  conspicuous,  and 
devoted  advocate  of  the  cause  of  common  schools  and  internal  improve- 
ments in  North  Carolina ' ' — indicate  the  public  services  by  which  Dr. 
Caldwell  received  and  will  retain  the  lasting  gratitude  aud  affection 
both  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  and  of  the  State  of  his  early  adoption. 

III.     Elisha  Mitchell    (1793-1857) 

During  Dr.  Caldwell's  absences  from  the  University  the  position  of 
acting  president  had  always  fallen  to  Professor  Elisha  Mitchell.  Imme- 
diately after  Dr.  Caldwell 's  death  Dr.  Mitchell  was  made  president  pro 
tern,  and  filled  the  position  till  the  election  and  arrival  of  President 
David  Lowry  Swain.  Dr.  Mitchell  was  a  graduate  of  Yale  in  the  class 
with  Denison  Olmsted,  James  Longstreet,  author  of  ' '  Georgia  Scenes ' ', 
and  George  E.  Badger,  Senator  and  Secretary  of  the  Navy.  Dr.  Olmsted, 
a  Presbyterian,  was  his  colleague  at  Chapel  Hill  for  a  short  time  and  it 
was  these  two  men  who  began  the  great  work  of  making  the  soil,  the 
climate,  and  the  resources  of  North  Carolina  known  to  the  citizens  of 
the  state  and  to  those  far  beyond  the  state. 

Dr.  Mitchell  came  to  Chapel  Hill  in  1818  and  was  ordained  a  Presby- 
terian minister  in  1821.  Till  1825  he  filled  the  chair  of  mathematics 
and  natural  philosophy,  but  when  Dr.  Olmsted  was  called  from  Chapel 
Hill  to  Yale  Dr.  Mitchell  entered  upon  his  chosen  field  of  geology  and 
mineralogy.  During  his  thirty-nine  years  of  service  he  grew  steadily 
in  mental  stature,  in  usefulness  to  the  state,  and  in  the  esteem  of  all  who 
knew    him.     "His    massive,    tireless    frame,"    says    Dr.    Battle*,    "his 


"History  of  the  University   of  North  Carolina",   I,   681. 


76  Presbyterians  in  Educational  Work  in  North  Carolina 

encyclopedic  information  and  readiness  to  impart  it,  his  broad  humor, 
his  firm  but  not  narrow  Calvinism,  his  genial  manners,  his  laborious  read- 
ing, his  kindness  of  heart  and  unfailing  generosity,  his  intrepid  spirit,  his 
firm  reliance  on  his  opinions,  would  have  made  him  conspicuous  any- 
where. ' ' 

It  was  an  able  faculty  in  which  he  served,  the  Presbyterian  members 
alone  constituting  a  body  of  men  of  whom  any  university  might  be  proud. 
Of  President  Swain,  an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  Governor 
Vance*  said :  ' '  He  who  would  fully  comprehend  the  great  work  of 
David  Swain's  life  would  have  to  stand  upon  the  battlements  of  Heaven 
and  survey  the  moral  world  with  an  angel's  ken".  There  was  also  Dr. 
James  Phillips,  Presbyterian  minister  and  professor  of  mathematics, 
whose  public  services,  if  they  have  suffered  eclipse  at  all,  have  suffered 
it  because  they  have  been  overshadowed  by  the  combined  services  of  his 
son,  Dr.  Charles  Phillips,  and  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Cornelia  Phillips 
Spencer.  When  some  one  said  in  Governor  Vance's  presence  that  Mrs. 
Spencer  was  the  brainiest  woman  in  the  State,  he  replied  promptly: 
' '  Yes,  and  man,  too. ' ' 

Able  as  were  his  friends  and  colleagues,  however,  Elisha  Mitchell 
seems  to  me  to  have  made  a  deeper  and  more  personal  impress  upon  the 
State  than  any  of  them.  He  was  the  first  who  saw  clearly  and  wrought 
for  a  lifetime  to  make  patent  and  potent  the  vision  of  physical  North 
Carolina, — its  illimitable  wealth  of  forest  and  field  and  mountain,  its 
hidden  ores,  its  majestic  waterways,  its  cities  and  sanitariums,  its 
workshops  and  factories  and,  above  all,  its  one  mountain  peak,  unequalled 
but  unacknowledged.  He  knew  no  Eastern  Carolina  or  Western  Caro- 
lina but  only  North  Carolina  as  God  made  it.  He  became  a  martyr  not 
to  science  in  general  but  to  the  scientific  development  of  North  Carolina. 
His  death  on  the  highest  peak  of  the  Blue  Eidge,  which  he  had  proved 
to  be  the  highest,  swept  the  state  with  a  wave  of  patriotic  and  per- 
sonal devotion  unparalleled  in  our  history.  Of  the  many  resolutions 
which  his  death  called  forth  none  seem  to  me  quite  so  beautifully  phrased 
as  those  from  Davidson  College :  ' '  Through  the  whole  of  a  long  life  he 
was  an  assiduous  and  enthusiastic  devotee  of  science,  and  to  us  there  is 
something  of  a  melancholy,  poetic  grandeur  and  greatness  in  the  place 
and  manner  of  his  death,  whereby  science  in  burying  one  of  her  worthiest 
sons  has  hallowed  a  new  Pisgah,  which  future  generations  shall  know 
and  mark. ' ' 

Dr.  Mitchell  lives  today  not  because  Mt.  Mitchell  and  the  Elisha 
Mitchell  Scientific  Society  and  Mitchell  County  perpetuate  his  name, 
but  because  he  wrought  at  a  splendid  design.  He  did  not  live  to  com- 
plete it — it  is  not  completed  yet — but  by  scientific  reports  in  many 
national  journals,  by  special  articles  in  magazines  and  newspapers,  by 
personal  appeals  in  season  and  out  of  season,  by  repeated  visits  and 
prolonged  investigations,  he  affected  powerfully  the  public  opinion  of  his 
time  and  left  North  Carolina  a  richer,  a  wiser,  a  more  forward-looking 
state  than  he  had  found  it.  I  can  never  read  Browning's  great  poem, 
The  Grammarian's  Funeral,  without  thinking  of  the  burial  of  Dr. 
Mitchell.     As  the  grammarian's  pallbearers  ascended  the  mountain  they 


*  W.  J.  Peele's  "Lives  of  Distinguished  North  Carolinians",  p.  244. 


C.  Alphonso  Smith  77 

chanted,   you   remember,   the  praises   of   their   hero,   catching   more   and 
more  of  his  spirit  as  they  neared  the  far  summit : 

' '  That  low  man  seeks  a  little  thing  to  do, 

Sees  it  and  does  it: 
This  high  man,  with  a  great  thing  to  pursue, 

Dies  ere  he  knows  it. 
That  low  man  goes  on  adding  one  to  one, 

His  hundred 's  soon  hit : 
This  high  man,  aiming  at  a  million, 

Misses  an  unit. 
Here — here 's  his  place,  where  meteors  shoot, 

Clouds  form, 
Lightnings   are   loosed, 

Stars  come  and  go. 
Lofty  designs  must  close  in  like  effects: 

Loftily  lying, 
Leave  him — still  loftier  than  the  world  suspects, 

Living  and  dying. ' ' 

IV.     William  Joseph  Martin  (1830-1896) 

Dr.  Mitchell  was  succeeded  by  William  J.  Martin.  He  was  a  native 
of  Virginia,  had  been  a  graduate  student  of  the  University  of  Virginia, 
and  for  three  years  had  served  with  distinguished  success  as  professor  of 
natural  philosophy  and  chemistry  at  Washington  College,  now  Washing- 
ton and  Jefferson  College,  Washington,  Pennsylvania.  He  succeeded  at 
once  in  securing  a  large  appropriation  for  laboratory  work  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  North  Carolina,  and  thus  put  the  study  of  chemistry  upon  a 
higher  and  more  scientific  plane  than  it  had  before  occupied.  On 
September  21,  1861,  after  drilling  the  students  in  military  tactics,  he 
resigned  his  chair  and  entered  the  Confederate  Army.  After  serving 
as  Captain  of  the  Twenty-eighth  North  Carolina  Infantry  he  was  made 
Lientenant-Colonel  of  the  Eleventh,  the  famous  "Bethel  Begiment". 
After  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg  he  was  made  Colonel.  Four  times 
wounded,  his  commission  as  General  had  just  been  signed  when  the  sur- 
render at  Appomattox  gave  him  again  to  the  cause  of  education.  After 
serving  two  years  longer  at  Chapel  Hill,  he  founded  the  Columbian  High 
School  at  Columbia,  Tennessee,  was  elected  professor  of  chemistry  at 
Davidson  College  in  1869,  and  arrived  at  his  new  post  in  1870.  Here 
his  life  work  began  and  here  his  fame  as  a  teacher  and  moulder  of  men 
was  established. 

Davidson  College  had  opened  its  doors  in  1837.  No  more  favorable 
place  for  a  Presbyterian  college  could  have  been  found  in  the  entire 
South.  Not  far  from  its  site  had  flourished  such  classical  schools  as 
Crowfield,  Sugar  Creek,  Queen's  Museum,  Zion-Parnassus,  Providence, 
Eocky  Eiver,  Poplar  Tent  and  Bethany,  all  under  Presbyterian  control. 
Though  founded  long  after  the  Eevolutionary  War,  Davidson  College 
gathered  up  and  conserved  the  best  traditions  of  that  heroic  age  and  took 
its  name  from  General  William  Davidson,  a  noted  Eevolutionary  soldier, 
on  whose  broad  acres  the  college  was  built  and  whose  heroic  death  at 


78  Presbyterians  in  Educational  WorTc  in  North  Carolina 

Cowan's  Ford  had  hallowed  both  his  name  and  his  estate.  Among  the 
presidents  of  Davidson  College  who  have  passed  to  their  reward  may  be 
mentioned  Dr.  Eobert  Hall  Morrison,  Dr.  Samuel  Williamson,  Dr.  Drury 
Lacy,  Dr.  J.  L.  Kirkpatrick,  and  Dr.  George  Wilson  McPhail.  When 
Colonel  Martin  came  to  Davidson  it  already  counted  on  its  honor-roll  of 
professors  such  men  as  General  D.  H.  Hill,  soldier  and  litterateur;  Wash- 
ington C.  Kerr,  who  as  State  geologist  continued  the  work  of  Elisha 
Mitchell;  Dr.  Charles  Phillips,  who  helped  Dr.  Kemp  P.  Battle  and  Mrs. 
Spencer  to  lift  the  University  out  of  the  chaos  of  Eeconstruction,  and 
many  others  who  had  given  the  institution  high  rank  throughout  the 
South,  a  rank  more  than  maintained  from  that  day  to  this. 

Colonel  Martin's  professorship,  lasting  from  1869  to  1896,  is  still 
the  longest  in  the  history  of  Davidson.  Prom  1880  to  1884  it  was  my 
privilege  to  know  him  in  his  classroom  and  in  his  home,  and  of  all 
the  college  professors  under  whom  it  has  been  my  lot  to  sit,  my  heart  and 
head  yield  first  place  to  William  J.  Martin.  As  a  teacher  it  was  not 
his  scholarship  that  made  the  deepest  impression,  though  his  scholarship 
was  ample  and  constantly  renewed.  It  was  first  of  all  his  ability  to  dis- 
tinguish with  lightning  rapidity  between  the  essential  and  the  non-essen- 
tial. He  pierced  instantly  to  the  centre  of  a  subject  and  expounded  it 
from  the  centre  outward,  not  from  the  circumference  inward.  His 
philosophy  seemed  to  be,  ' '  Take  care  of  the  centre  and  the  circumference 
will  take  care  of  itself. ' '  In  his  presence  I  felt  a  new  reverence  for 
nuclear  fact  and  nuclear  truth.  Chemistry  did  not  seem  to  be  an  end 
in  itself  but  rather  one  of  the  windows  through  which  Nature  peered  to 
let  us  know  how  she  looked  and  how  she  acted. 

It  has  always  seemed  to  me  that  with  but  little  additional  training 
Colonel  Martin  would  have  made  a  great  teacher  of  history,  literature, 
sociology  or  anything  else,  not  because  his  range  was  wide,  but  because 
his  vision  was  central  and  unerring.  His  method  was  essentially  that 
of  the  soldier,- — he  captured  the  outworks  only  as  an  incident  to  his  march 
to  the  citadel.  Prescott  tells  us  that  the  secret  of  the  brilliant  victory 
won  by  Cortez  over  the  Aztecs  at  the  Battle  of  Otumba  was  that  the 
Spanish  commander,  disregarding  the  two  hundred  thousand  Aztec 
soldiers  that  stood  in  front  of  his  little  band,  ordered  his  men  to  strike 
straight  for  the  person  of  the  commander-in-chief.  "There  is  our 
mark !  ' '  said  he.  ' '  Follow  and  support  me!"  That  was  Colonel  Mar- 
tin 's  method,  and  it  is  a  method  as  applicable  to  the  study  of  literature  as 
to  the  study  of  chemistry,  to  the  conduct  of  life  as  to  the  attainment  of 
learning.  But  I  am  sure  that  I  speak  for  all  those  who  knew  Colonel 
Martin  when  I  say  that  the  man  was  greater  than  the  professor.  He 
taught  chemistry  professionally,  he  impressed  manhood  unconsciously. 
We  were  predisposed  to  admire  him,  for  we  knew  that  this  prompt  and 
resilient  figure  had  come  to  us,  like  Little  Giffen  of  Tennessee. 

"Out  of  the  focal  and  foremost  fire, 
Out  of  the  hospital  walls  as  dire." 

I  never  heard  him  allude  even  remotely  to  the  war,  but  the  sulphur- 
ous fumes  in  his  laboratory  spoke  to  my  imagination  of  battle,  and  the 
imperial  figure  that  moved  amid  them  was  always  that  of  the  Confed- 
erate soldier,  the  "gentleman  unafraid." 


C.  Alphonso   Smith  79 

It  has  been  said  that  higher  education  in  the  South  was  retarded 
shortly  after  the  war  because  so  many  Confederate  soldiers  became 
teachers,  the  implication  being  that  the  four  years  given  to  battle  might 
more  profitably  have  been  given  to  books.  The  charge  rests  on  a  curious 
misconception  of  what  higher  education  means.  If  it  means  bookishness 
the  charge  has  much  to  support  it.  But  if  it  means  manhood,  self-re- 
liance, disciplined  conduct,  instant  obedience  to  authority,  the  ability 
to  ally  oneself  for  life  or  death  with  a  great  cause,  then  I  know  no 
breed  of  men  to  whom  the  South  owes  more  than  to  her  soldier  teachers, 
her  Eobert  E.  Lee,  her  D.  H.  Hill,  her  Robert  Bingham,  her  William 
J.  Martin. 

V.     Calvin  Henderson  Wiley  (1819-1887). 

But  if  Presbyterian  educators  have  profoundly  influenced  college  and 
university  standards,  they  have  had  an  even  greater  influence  upon  the 
common  schools.  From  1861  to  1865  the  colleges  and  universities  of  the 
South  found  themselves  depopulated.  Students  had  become  soldiers. 
The  University  of  North  Carolina,  Davidson  College,  Wake  Forest,  and 
Trinity  either  closed  their  doors  or  ministered  to  a  constantly  diminish- 
ing student-body.  But  a  still  greater  peril  threatened;  it  was  that  the 
common  schools  might  be  closed  and  the  money  collected  for  them  used 
for  war  purposes.  That  our  schools  were  not  closed  and  that  the  funds 
were  not  diverted  is  due  to  one  man,  Calvin  Henderson  Wiley.  To  him 
belongs  the  greatest  single -armed  achievement  in  the  history  of  public 
instruction  in  the  South.  If  Caldwell  Institute  in  Greensboro  had  done 
nothing  else  than  prepare  this  man  for  college,  it  would  have  justified 
its  existence  and  vindicated  the  faith  of  its  founders.  North  Carolina 
had  already  produced  men  to  whom  the  common  schools  were  a  theory,  a 
possibility,  even  an  ideal.     With  Calvin  H.  Wiley  they  were  a  passion. 

Dr.  Wiley's  life  was  uneventful  except  for  the  new  ideas  at  which 
he  wrought.  He  did  not  find  the  handle  of  his  being  until  1852.  From 
1845  to  1852  his  ambition  was  to  make  the  history  of  North  Carolina 
known  at  home  and  abroad  through  historical  novels.  I  have  always 
had  a  peculiar  sympathy  and  admiration  for  him  in  this  effort.  It 
bespoke  the  patriot  and  the  far-sighted  patriot.  If  the  history  of  North 
Carolina  is  ever  to  become  a  part  of  the  cultural  consciousness  of  men, 
as  I  believe  it  is  destined  to  become,  it  must  be  interpreted  by  the  con- 
structive imagination  as  well  as  by  the  analytic  reason.  It  must  be 
told  not  merely  in  chronicle  and  textbook  but  in  song  and  story.  In 
Scotland  it  is  said  that  every  spot  has  its  legend  and  every  stream  sings 
its  song.  But  it  was  not  the  historians  that  made  it  so:  it  was  Walter 
Scott  and  Eobert  Burns.  Nobody  in  North  Carolina  had  seen  this  so 
clearly,  I  think,  as  Dr.  Wiley.  To  put  his  ideas  into  effect  he  published 
in  New  York  in  1847  a  novel  called  Alamance,  or  the  Great  and  Final 
Experiment.  Chapter  47  describes  the  Battle  of  Guilford  Court  House, 
and  Dr.  David  Caldwell  is  one  of  the  leading  characters.  In  1849 
appeared  Roanoke,  or  Where  is  Utopia?  This  novel  was  published  in 
London  under  the  title  of  Old  Dan  Tucker  and  his  Son  Walter,  a  Tale 
of  North  Carolina.     In  1852  his  last  novel  was  published  in  Philadelphia 


80  Presbyterians  in  Educational   Work  in  North  Carolina 

and  was  called  Life  in  the  South:  a  Companion  to  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin. 
Strange  to  say,  it  is  a  story  of  the  eighteenth  century  ending  with  the 
Battle  of  Moore 's  Creek  Bridge.  But  more  astonishing  still  is  the 
beginning :  ' '  Whoever  will  examine  the  map  of  North  Carolina  will 
at  once  be  struck  with  the  fact  that  Providence  did  not  design  the  State 
for  a  commercial  one.  *  *  The  wild  and  restless  demon  of  Progress 
has  not  yet  breathed  there  its  scorching  breath  on  the  green  foliage  of 
nature. ' '     Plainly  Dr.  Wiley  had  not  yet  found  himself. 

But  in  1852  he  was  elected  our  first  superintendent  of  education  and 
a  new  era  in  North  Carolina  history  began.  Prom  1852  to  1865,  when 
the  position  of  superintendent  was  abolished,  Dr.  Wiley  was  the  fore- 
most common  school  advocate  in  the  United  States*.  These  figures  tell 
their  own  story:  In  1853  there  were  800  teachers  in  the  public  schools 
of  North  Carolina;  in  1860  there  were  2,286.  In  1853  there  were 
83,373  pupils;  in  1860  there  were  116,567.  In  1853  the  receipts  were 
$192,250;  in  1860  they  were  $408,566.  In  1858  North  Carolina  had  a 
larger  school  fund  than  Georgia,  Virginia,  Maryland,  New  Jersey, 
Massachusetts  or  Maine. 

Dr.  Wiley  continued  his  activity  in  behalf  of  the  public  schools  till 
his  death  in  1887.  His  fame  was  national  and  he  was  a  familar  plat- 
form figure  in  many  states.  In  1866  he  was  ordained  a  Presbyterian 
minister.  But  his  greatest  work  was  done  between  1852  and  1865.  The 
monument  erected  to  him  in  Winston  in  1904  bears  this  inscription: 
' '  Erected  by  the  pupils  of  the  Graded  Schools  of  Winston  to  the  memory 
of  the  Bev.  Calvin  H.  Wiley,  D.  D.,  as  one  of  the  founders  of  the  schools 
of  this  city  and  as  the  father  of  the  public  school  system  of  North  Caro- 
lina. ' '  But  the  best  comment  on  his  service  is  found  in  his  last  report 
made  to  Governor  Jonathan  Worth,  January  16,  1866:  "To  the  lasting 
honor  of  North  Carolina  her  public  schools  survived  the  terrible  shock  of 
cruel  war,  and  the  state  of  the  south  which  furnished  most  material  and 
the  greatest  number  and  the  bravest  troops  to  the  war  did  more  than  all 
the  others  for  the  cause  of  popular  education. ' '  Well  does  Superin- 
tendent James  Y.  Joyner  sayst:  "If  ever  man  was  inspired  and  called 
of  God  to  a  work,  Calvin  H.  Wiley  seems  to  me  to  have  been  inspired 
and  called  to  his. ' ' 

VI.     Charles  Duncan  McIver  (1860-1906) 

When  Calvin  H.  Wiley  died,  Dr.  McIver  was  principal  of  the  literary 
department  of  Peace  Institute  in  Baleigh;  when  Colonel  Martin  died, 
Dr.  McIver  was  president  of  the  State  Normal  and  Industrial  College 
for  Women  in  Greensboro.  During  these  nine  years  no  one  brain  in 
North  Carolina  developed  more  rapidly  than  his  and  no  one  man  did  a 
work  of  vaster  or  more  beneficent  import. 

I  need  not  dwell  upon  his  life.  You  know  it  as  well  as  I.  You  men 
and  women  of  Buffalo  and  Alamance  and  Greensboro  can  still  see  his 


*  Horace   Mann,   with  whom  Dr.   Wiley   is   often   compared,   became  president 
of  Antioch  College  in  1852  and  died  in  1859. 

t  Address  at  the  Unveiling  of  the  Monument  to  Calvin  H.  Wile}',  at  Winston, 
Sept.  9,   1904. 


C.  Alphonso   Smith  81 

hurrying  Scotch  figure  moving  upon  the  streets  of  the  city  that  guards 
his  remains.  His  interests  and  activities  were  many,  but  one  purpose, 
one  passion  dominated  them  all.  He  belongs  with  Dr.  Wiley  rather 
than  with  any  of  the  others  whom  I  have  mentioned.  Neither  he  nor 
Dr.  Wiley  was  a  great  teacher  or  a  great  scholar  in  the  modern  sense. 
They  were  moulders  of  public  opinion  rather  than  of  individual  lives. 
It  was  the  multitude  rather  than  the  one  man  that  sent  the  challenge 
to  their  souls.  When  the  crisis  came  they  confronted  a  whole  State,  a 
State  that  was  either  openly  opposed  to  them  or  passively  indifferent. 
They  said  to  the  State:  "I  am  no  better  than  you  and  no  wiser;  but 
in  this  one  matter  I  see  more  clearly  than  you.  I  will  not  go  to  you; 
you  shall  come  to  me. ' '     And  the  State  came. 

When  Dr.  Mclver  was  called  to  Peace  Institute,  the  education  of 
women  at  State  expense  had  no  strong  advocates  in  North  Carolina. 
The  Presbyterian  Church,  it  is  true,  had  given  to  the  cause  of  woman 's 
education  such  men  as  Professor  Eiehard  Sterling  and  Eev.  J.  M.  M. 
Caldwell  (grandson  of  Dr.  David  Caldwell),  both  at  Bdgeworth  Female 
Seminary  in  Greensboro.  It  had  given  Dr.  Eobert  Burwell  and  his  son, 
Captain  John  B.  Burwell,  the  first  principals  of  Peace  Institute.  But 
Dr.  Mclver 's  conception  of  woman 's  education  does  not  seem  to  me  to 
have  been  suggested  or  even  remotely  influenced  by  his  Presbyterian 
predecessors. 

Dr.  Mclver 's  distinctive  contribution  to  the  educational  history  of 
North  Carolina  lay  in  his  advocacy  of  woman 's  education  not  as  an 
end  in  itself  but  as  a  means  of  decreasing  the  alarming  illiteracy  preva- 
lent in  the  State.  He  and  Dr.  Wiley  were  thus  making  for  the  same 
goal,  but  they  saw  the  goal  from  different  angles  and  approached  it  by 
different  routes.  Dr.  Mclver 's  service  to  the  State  touched,  it  is  true, 
every  phase  of  educational  effort;  but  his  central  and  controlling  thought 
from  first  to  last  is  found  in  such  sayings  as  these:  "The  cheapest, 
easiest,  and  surest  road  to  universal  education  is  to  educate  those  who  are 
to  be  the  mothers  and  teachers  of  future  generations. "  "  An  educated 
man  may  be  the  father  of  illiterate  children,  but  the  children  of  edu- 
cated women  are  never  illiterate. "  "  The  proper  training  of  women  is 
the  strategic  point  in  the  education  of  the  race."  "Educate  a  man  and 
you  have  educated  one  person,  educate  a  mother  and  you  have  educated 
a  whole  family. "  "  We  could  better  afford  to  have  five  illiterate  men 
than  one  illiterate  mother. ' ' 

It  is  easy  to  say  that  the  underlying  thought  in  these  selections  is  not 
new.  Perhaps  it  is  not,  though  I  for  one  have  never  seen  the  same 
thought  expressed  with  half  the  same  directness  or  sense  of  personal  con- 
viction. But  Dr.  Mclver 's  life  work  was  not  a  new  thought :  it  was  a 
new  era.  No  reformer  builds  on  a  new  thought.  He  takes  an  old  but 
unrealized  thought,  interprets  it  in  terms  of  practice  and  policy, 
translates  it  from  the  passive  voice  into  the  active  voice,  dedicates 
himself  to  it,  inscribes  it  on  a  banner,  rallies  the  hostile  and  heed- 
less to  its  defence,  till  at  last  it  becomes  self-supporting  and  self-pro- 


*  Address  at  the  unveiling  of  the  Monument  to  Calvin  H.  Wiley,  at  Winston, 
September  9,  1904. 


82  Presbyterians  in  Educational  Work  in  North  Carolina 

pelling.  This  was  Dr.  Mclver  's  mission  and  this  is  the  heritage  that 
he  leaves  to  all  reforms,  whether  in  church  or  state,  who  in  the  long 
years  may  follow  him. 

Such,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  is  the  story  in  meagre  outline  of  some 
of  the  men  whom  the  Presbyterian  Church  during  the  lifetime  of  this 
Synod  has  given  to  education  in  North  Carolina.  One  hazards  nothing 
in  saying  that  if  these  six  men  had  never  lived  or  if  they  had  devoted 
their  constructive  effort  to  more  personal  ends,  the  history  of  the  State 
would  have  to  be  rewritten.  David  Caldwell  spoke  for  them  all  when  he 
said :  "I  have  never  tried  to  be  rich  but  only  useful. "  It  is  the  old 
but  always  uplifting  story  of  a  man 's  finding  himself  by  losing  himself 
in  a  great  but  needy  cause.  David  Caldwell  was  not  David  Caldwell  till 
students  began  to  flock  to  him  and  he  felt  the  thrill  of  imparting  light 
and  leading  to  those  who  were  to  be  the  heralds  of  a  new  democracy  and 
the  builders  of  a  new  continent.  Joseph  Caldwell  was  himself  re-made 
by  the  years  in  which  he  Avas  shaping  the  destiny  of  a  great  common- 
wealth by  shaping  the  destiny  of  its  nascent  university.  Elisha  Mitchell 
would  have  remained  only  Professor  Mitchell  of  Yale  had  he  not  come  to 
feel  himself  the  trustee  of  the  regnant  promise  of  physical  North  Caro- 
lina. William  J.  Martin  would  have  left  an  honored  but  not  a  loved 
name  had  not  the  call  come,  as  it  came  to  his  great  chieftain  at  Lexing- 
ton, to  beat  his  sword  into  a  ploughshare  and  to  till  and  plant  for 
eternity.  Calvin  H.  Wiley  would  have  died  an  unknown  lawyer  or  a 
would-be  novelist  had  he  not  heard  the  pathetic  voices  of  little  children 
calling  to  him  out  of  the  dark.  And  Charles  Duncan  Mclver  would  still 
be  teaching  girls  the  exceptions  in  the  Latin  third  declension  had  not  a 
passion  for  human  service  flamed  into  his  young  life  and  burnt  it  to 
its  untimely  but  victorious  end. 

"Heroes  of  old!     I  humbly  lay 

The  laurel  on  your  graves  again; 
Whatever  men  have  done,  men  say, — 

The  deeds  you  wrought  are  not  in  vain. ' ' 


